IMPORTANT POINT
Publication of the notice in not so widely circulated newspapers will not automatically vitiate the proceeding unless mala fide is proved.

JUDGMENT

R.V. Raveendran, J. —

Leave granted.

2. An area of 4.89 acres of land (which includes 54 cents in Survey No. 186/1 and 1.09 acres of land in Survey No. 186/2, in all 1.63 acres, which is the subject matter of this appeal) in Koyambedu Village, Chennai District was notified for acquisition for further implementation of Koyambedu Wholesale Market Complex, under preliminary notification dated 13.11.1998 issued under section 4(1) and final declaration dated 2.2.2000 issued under section 6 of Land Acquisition Act, 1894 (‘Act’ for short). The preliminary notification was published in the T.N. Gazette dated 15.12.1998. It was also published in two daily Tamil newspapers - “Maduari Mani” and “Kadiravan” on 6.1.1999.

3. The said lands (Sy. No.186/1 and 186/2) belonged to one V.T. Jayaraman and he was shown as the registered owner/pattadar of the said lands in the revenue records. He is stated to have died on 3.11.1978 leaving two sons and two daughters (respondents 1 to 4 herein) as his legal heirs. On the death of V.T. Jayaraman, the said lands bearing Sy. No.186/1 and 186/2 were not mutated in the names of his legal heirs but continued to be in the name of the deceased V.T. Jayaraman in the revenue records. Respondents 1 to 4 leased the said lands in favour of the eleventh respondent (a trust for running an educational institution) on 25.10.1987. Respondents 1 to 4 also sold portions of the said lands to respondents 5 to 10 who in turn, also granted a lease of their portions in favour of eleventh respondent. Thus respondents 1 to 4 were not shown as the owners/occupiers of the said lands in the revenue/municipal records, nor were they in physical possession of the said lands. It is stated that the eleventh respondent was in exclusive possession of the said lands at the time of issue of preliminary and final notifications and even thereafter.

4. The respondents 1 to 11 challenged the acquisition of Sy. No.186/1 and 186/2 under preliminary notification dated 13.11.1998 and final notification dated 2.2.2000 in a Writ Petition (W.P.No.7789/2000) filed on 21.4.2000, contending that the acquisition was invalid for the following reasons: (a) The preliminary notification and final notifications were issued showing the name of a dead person (V.T. Jayaraman) as the owner of the said lands. Respondents 1 to 4 who were the owners of the lands, were not issued any notice in regard to enquiry under section 5A of the Act thereby denying them opportunity to file objections and participate in the enquiry under section 5A of the Act. (b) The preliminary notification was published in two Tamil Dailies “Madurai Mani” and “Kadiravan” which had no circulation in the locality, thereby violating the provisions of section 4(1) of the Act. (c) The eleventh respondent was serving the residents of Koyembedu and surrounding villages by using the lands for running a school and college and therefore the said lands should be excluded from acquisition. In the said writ petition, the writ petitioners (respondents 1 to 11) admitted that the eleventh respondent as also respondents 5 to 10 had received a notice dated 9.6.1999 from the appellant calling upon them to appear in the enquiry under Section 5A of the Act; and that respondents 5 to 11 on learning that the lands were notified under section 4(1) of the Act, had filed their objections dated 9.7.1999 against the acquisition proposal on the ground that a school was running in the said lands and that the lands were far away from the existing market complex.

5. A learned Single Judge of the Madras High Court by order dated 10.4.2003 allowed the writ petition holding that publication of the notification under section 4(1) of the Act in the newspapers “Kadiravan” and “Madurai Mani” which had no circulation in the locality, did not fulfill the mandatory statutory requirement under Section 4(1) of the Act. Consequently, he quashed the preliminary notifications under Section 4(1) and the subsequent final declarati