PETITIONER:
TOTA RAM
Vs.
RESPONDENT:
STATE OF U.P. & ORS.
DATE OF JUDGMENT: 09/07/1997
BENCH:
K. RAMASWAMY, D.P. WADHWA
ACT
HEADNOTE
JUDGMENT
ORDER
This special leave petition arises from the judgment of the High Court of Allahabad, made on November 19, 1996 in Writ Petition No. 12843/94.
Admittedly, on reference under Section 18 of the Land Acquisition Act, 1894 (for shorts the "Act"), the reference Court passed its award and decree on May 18, 1990. The petitioner filed an application under section 28-A of the Act on July 22, 1992 stating that he came to know on 19th July, 1992 that in another reference compensation for the lands had been enhanced rates as he had filed application under proviso to section 28-A reads as under :
" 28-A Re-determination of the
amount of compensation on the
basis of the award of the Court
(1) Whether in an award under
this Part, the Court allows to
the applicant any amount of awarded
by the Collector under Section
11, the persons interested in all
the other land covered by he same
notification under section 4 sub-
section (1) and who are also
aggrieved by the award of the
collector may notwithstanding
that they had not made an
application to the collector
under Section 16, by written
application to the collector
within three months from require
that the amount of compensation
payable to them may be re-
determined on the basis of the
amount of compensation awarded by
the court :
Provided that in computing the
period of three months within an
application to the Collector
shall be made under this sub-
section, the day on which the award
was pronounced and the time
requisite for obtaining a copy of
the award shall be excluded.
(2) The Collector shall, on receipt
of an application under sub-
section (1) conduct an inquiry
after giving notice to all the
persons interested and giving
them a reasonable opportunity of
being heard and make an award
determining the amount of
Compensation payable to the
applicants.
(3) Any person who has not accepted
the award under sub-section (2)
may, by written application to
the collector, require that the
matter be referred by the
collector for the determination
of the Court and the provisions of
Section 18 to 28 shall, so far
may be, apply to such reference as
they apply to a reference under
Section 18."
A reading thereof clearly that a person whose land is acquired under a common notification issued under Section 4 910 of the Act but who failed to avail of the remedy of the remedy of reference under section 18, is eligible to make a written application within three months from the date of the award of the court enacting the compensation. It has been interpreted by this court that the "court " means court of original civil jurisdiction to whom reference under section 18 would lie. Admittedly, the award of the reference court having been made on May 18, 1990, the limitation began to run from that date. The proviso to Section 28-A gives a right to the persons to obtain the certified copy of the award and decree and the time taken for obtaining the certified copy of the award and the decree shall be excluded in computing the period of three months. In view of the express language, the question of knowledge does not arise and, therefore, the plea of the petitioner that the limitation of three months begins to start from the dare of the knowledge is clearly unsustainable and cannot be accepted in that behalf.
The special leave petition is accordingly dismissed.