This petition is filed under Article 226 of the Constitution for the Issue of a writ of certiorari, quashing the notification of the 1st respondent, State of Madras represented by the Secretary to Government Home Department, in G.O.Rt. No. 4709, Home, dated 5th December, 1963 under section 6 (1) of the Land Acquisition Act, The acquisition proceedings were initiated by the issue, on 1st July, 1959 of a notification under section 4 (1) of the Act that several items of land, including Survey No. 92/1 measuring 2.10 acres of the petitioner, were required for a public purpose, namely, for providing house-sites to the Harijans of Alagapuram village, Salem District. The details of the, petitioner’s main grievance in regard to the abovesaid land acquisition proceedings, as stated by the learned Counsel before me, Sri V. Vedantachariar, at the time of the hearing of the petition are as under.

Though the section 4 (1) notification was issued on 1st July, 1959 the subsequent proceedings dragged on through an unconscionably long time, with the result that the section 6(1) declaration was published in the Fort St. George Gazette only on 1st January, 1964 after a period of nearly four yea