Point of Law: Acquisition of Land - Question of facts - Question of fact, which cannot be resolved by this Court.

JUDGMENT :

DEVAN RAMACHANDRAN, J.

1. The petitioners assail Ext.P31 notification issued by the District Collector, Alappuzha under the provisions of Section 11 of the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013 (hereinafter referred to as “Fair Compensation Act”); along with Ext.P36, which is the declaration issued by the said Authority under Section 19 of the afore said Act on various grounds as I will presently state.

2. Dr. V.N. Sankarjee - learned counsel appearing for the petitioners, edificed his arguments on the following broad assertions:

(a) The District Collector, Alappuzha, is not the “appropriate Government” as per the provisions of the “Fair Compensation Act.”

(b) Even if the District Collector can be construed to be the “appropriate Government” Ext.P31 notification is incompetent because it takes in two different districts.

(c) Ext.P31 notification is bad because the necessary publication, as per Rule 18 of the Right to Fair Compensation Transparency in Land Acquisition Rehabilitation Resettlement Kerala Rules, 2015 (Hereinafter referred to as the “Fair Compensation Rules”) has not been made.

(d) Ext.P36 declaration also suffers from the vice of it not having been published as per the “Fair Compensation Rules.”

(e) No individual notice was issued to his clients, as is required under Section 21 of the “Fair Compensation Act” since they are in occupation of the properties in question.

3. Dr. V.N. Sankarjee then went on to explain each of his afore submissions by arguing that the District Collector cannot be construed to be the “appropriate Government” under the provisions of Section 3E of the “Fair Compensation Act” since said Authority can only obtain the competence to requisition and not to acquire lands. As far as the 2nd limb of his argument is concerned, Dr. V.N. Sankarjee predicated that since Section 3E of the “Fair Compensation Act” only provides that District Collector shall be deemed to be the “appropriate Government” for an area not exceeding as may be notified by the Government, Ext.P31 notification - which takes in two different districts, namely Alappuzha and Kottayam - is incompetent.

4. On the 3rd, 4th and 5th limbs of his argument, Dr. V.N. Sankarjee contended that no materials have been placed on record by the official respondents to demonstrate the statutory necessitated publication of either Ext.P31 or Ext.P36; or the service of individual notices on his clients, as required under Section 21 of the “Fair Compensation Act”; and therefore, that they are all liable to be set aside by this Court.

5. In response, Sri. K.V. Manoj Kumar - learned Senior Government Pleader appearing for the official respondents, submitted that Section 3E of the “Fair Compensation Act” defines the words “appropriate Government” and under its proviso, makes it ineluctable that, on a notification to be issued by the Government, the Collector of the district shall be deemed to be “the appropriate Government.” He submitted that Government has already issued such a notification and therefore, that the afore contention of the petitioners, that a District Collector, cannot be construed to be the “appropriate Government” has no legs to stand on.

6. He, thereafter, in answer to the 2nd limb of the argument of Dr. V.N. Sankarjee, took my attention to Rule 3(3) of the “Fair Compensation Rules” to show that where the lands to be acquired are spread over more than one district, the requisition for acquisition shall be made to the Collector of that district where the major portion of such lands is situated. He then impelled a corollary argument that this Rule would clearly show that the Collector of any one of the districts can requisition and acquire the land as per the notification of the Government.

7. Finally, on the 3rd, 4th and 5th limbs of the submissions of Dr. V.N. Sankarjee, Sri. K.V. Manoj Kumar pointed out to a memo of his, dated 06.04.2022, wherein, publications of Exts.P2