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2006 Supreme(All) 2302

[2006(7) ADJ 133 (DB)]
ALLAHABAD HIGH COURT
(Division Bench)
BEFORE : R.P. MISRA AND PANKAJ MITHAL, JJ.
KASHAMA SAHAKARI AVAS SAMITI LTD. ....Petitioner
Versus
STATE OF U.P. AND OTHERS ......Respondents
(Civil Misc. Writ Petition No. 72063 of 2005, decided on 25th August, 2006)

Advocates:
Counsel :
Manish Goyal and P.C. Jain for the Petitioners; Alok Kumar Singh, S.C. and Smt. Sarita Singh for the Respondents 1, 2, 3 and Pradeep Kumar and Atul Mehra for A.D.A.

Headnote:Land Acquisition Act, 1894—Sections 5-A, 17, 4, 6 and 9—Issue of Notification, dated 3-10-05, issued under Section 4(1), read with Sections 17(1) and 17(4)—Validity of—Petitioner, a Co-operative Society—No legal discrepancy in issuing and publishing said, Notification—Admittedly, there was no frontal attack on validity of said Notification—Petitioner has failed to bring his case within exceptional categories on which said Notification could be challenged independently—Therefore, that challenge to said impugned Notification could not be accepted—Where power was arbitrarily exercised, without any materials, action could be subjected to judicial review, on grounds permitted under Article 226 of Constitution—And where Notifications were simultaneously issued, objectionable portions, which suffered from vice of arbitrariness alone—Could be quashed—Act was a self-contained Code in itself—No material on record to justify that land was so urgently needed that Collector/State Government could not even wait for completing summary Enquiry under Section 5-A of Act—Therefore, plea of A.D.A. that there was a real urgency for reasons that an Olympic size Stadium was to be constructed, was not tenable and not acceptable—Hence, Collector/State Government could not invoke provision of Section 17(1) and (4) of Act—Therefore, impugned Notification was liable to be quashed and set aside—However, respondents were at liberty to proceed with acquisitions, in accordance with law. [Paras 17, 19, 22, 24, 27, 33, 35, 37, 38, 39 and 40]

       

JUDGMENT

Hon’ble Pankaj Mithal, J.—The petitioner has assailed the notification dated 3.10.2005 (Annexure-1 to the writ petition) issued under Section 4(1) read with Section 17(1) and Section 17(4) of the Land Acquisition Act (hereinafter referred to as the Act). Primarily, as it would appear from the facts and discussions herein under, the petitioner has only attacked the notification issued under Section 17(1) and 17(4) of the Act by which the provisions of Section 5-A of the Act have been excluded and the petitioner’s right to file objections against the proposed acquisition has been taken away.

2. The petitioner is a Cooperative Housing Society duly registered under the U.P. Cooperative Societies Act. The petitioner for the purposes of developing land and promoting residential colony had purchased the land in dispute in the city of Agra. The petitioner for developing the said land had submitted a layout plan to the Agra Development Authority (hereinafter referred to as A.D.A.) for approval and when the same was not approved, the petitioner approached the High Court by filing a writ petition wherein vide order dated 6.10.2005 passed by this Court, directions were issued to the A.D.A. to consider the layout plan of the petitioner in accordance with law on merit provided the land is not under acquisition.

3. In the meantime, the State of U.P. on 3.10.2005 issued the impugned notification under Section 4 read with Section 17 of the Act proposing to acquire 395.5726 Hectare of land of the villages Barauli, Ahir, Bagda, Tora, Lakawali, Chamrauli, Mayapur and Kalal Kheria in Agra including the land in dispute. In the aforesaid notification, it has been clearly stated that the land is needed for the public purpose of plan development of a residential colony. The respondents further invoked the provisions of Section 17(4) of the Act and on account of urgency dispensed with the inquiry provided under Section 5-A of the Act. The aforesaid acquisition in effect is for the purposes of developing a residential colony with the name of Taj Nagari phase-III. The petitioner further states that the development authority is already possessed of over 800 bighas of land, which was acquired by it for Taj Nagari phase-II and this acquired land has not been developed by it, therefore, there is no need for acquiring any further land. The acquisition of land belonging to Cooperative Housing Society is in violation of Government Orders dated 27th October, 1986, 2.6.1998 and 22.10.2002. The petitioner by filing supplementary affidavit dated 12.12.2005 (served upon A.D.A. on 1.3.2006) has further alleged that the acquisition is in effect for providing land to Private Colonizers, which is not a public purpose. It has also been stated in the petition that the respondents have left out or released some plots of land from the acquisition on account of political influence or pressure and as such the action of the respondents in acquiring the land of the petitioner is arbitrary and discriminatory in nature. The Development Authority is not possessed with sufficient funds to meet out the expenses of the acquisition and the amount of Rs. 26,00,87,354.30 deposited by it is highly inadequate and insufficient.

4. The petitioner has mainly attacked the action of the respondents in invoking the provisions of Section 17(4) of the Act so as to dispense with the inquiry provided under Section 5-A of the Act. The petitioner contends that the valuable right of the petitioner to file objections under Section 5-A of the Act against the proposed acquisition cannot be taken away as the respondents have not applied mind as to whether there was any urgency of such a nature so as to exclude the petitioner’s rights under Section 5-A of the Act. The plea of urgency is belied from the fact that despite the impugned notification having been issued on 3.10.2005 even then the respondents have not cared to issue the final declaration under Section 6 of the Act till date.

5. At the tim



























































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