JUDGMENT :

Instant appeal filed under Section 54 of the Land Acquisition Act, 1894 (hereinafter referred to as the Act), lays challenge to award dated 5.6.2010, passed by learned Additional District Judge, Fast Track, Kullu, District Kullu, H.P., in Reference Petition No.139 of 2007, titled as Bhola Ram son of Daitu, since deceased, now through LRs versus Collector Land Acquisition and another, whereby Court below enhanced the amount of compensation awarded by Land Acquisition Collector.

2. Precisely, the facts of the case as emerge from the record are that land of the appellant came to be acquired for the purpose of construction of NHPC, Parvati Hydro Electric Project, Larji, District Kullu, HP and for that purpose, Notification under Section 4 of the Act was issued vide notification No.Vidyut Chh(5)19/2002, dated 22.3.2003. After completion of necessary codal formalities, Land Acquisition Collector vide award No.20, dated 6.1.2005 awarded the compensation amount.

3. Being aggrieved and dissatisfied with the quantum of compensation awarded by Land Acquisition Collector, appellant herein preferred reference petition under Section 18 of the Act in the Court of learned Additional District Judge, Fast Track, Kullu, Himachal Pradesh, who vide award dated 5.6.2010 enhanced the amount awarded by Land Acquisition Collector. Since, award amount awarded by reference court in the cases of other similar situate persons came to be further enhanced by this Court in the Regular First Appeals having been filed by the claimants in those cases, appellant herein has approached this Court in the instant proceedings for enhancement of compensation amount.

4. During the proceedings of the case, learned counsel representing the appellant while inviting attention of this Court to the judgment dated 22nd October, 2016, passed by Co-ordinate Bench of this Court in RFA No.282 of 2010 alongwith other connected matters, claimed that case at hand is squarely covered with the aforesaid judgment.

5. Vide order dated 4.10.2021, this Court directed respondent No.1 to verify aforesaid fact. Ms. Shreya Chauhan, learned counsel representing respondent No.1, while fairly admitting that the case at hand is squarely covered by the aforesaid judgment rendered by Coordinate Bench of this Court, contends that since appellant herein has approached this Court after inordinate delay of 5 years 10 months, prayer made in the instant appeal for enhancement deserves to be rejected outrightly.

6. Having heard learned counsel representing the parties and perused the material available on record, this Court finds that vide order dated 1.12.2017 delay in filing the appeal at hand was condoned, but in the said order, it was specifically observed that in case the appeal is preferred beyond the period of limitation, equities can be balanced by denying the claimants interest for the period when they did not approach this Court. Since, it is not in dispute interse parties that similarly situate persons, whose land was also acquired for the purpose of construction of Parvati Hydro Electric Project, Larji, District Kullu, H.P., by same notification and vide same award No.20, dated 6.1.2005 have been given enhanced amount of compensation in terms of the judgment dated 22nd October, 2010 passed by Co-ordinate Bench of this Court, prayer made in the instant appeal also deserves to be considered and decided in the light of aforesaid judgment. However, having taken note of the fact that appellant herein has approached this Court after inordinate delay of five years 10 months, he cannot be held entitled to interest for the period of five years 10 months.

7. In similar facts and circumstances, this Court vide judgment dated 7.8.2019, passed in RFA No.248 of 2019, titled Shri Dine Ram versus The Collector Land Acquisition and another, has condoned the delay, but denied the interest qua the period of delay. At this stage, it would be profitable to reproduce paras No.2 to 7 of the aforesaid judgment he