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TMI Blog2022 (7) TMI 1350X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... nds owned by the respondents herein - original landowners situated at Yavatmal, Maharashtra were acquired by the State Government under the provisions of the Land Acquisition Act for BSNL. The Land Acquisition Officer declared the award determining the total compensation @ Rs.14,33,703/- (at Rs.13.32 per sq. ft.). At the instance of the landowners, a reference was made to the Reference Court. The Reference Court enhanced the amount of compensation to Rs.21/- per sq. ft. 2.1 In a further appeal to the High Court at the instance of the original claimants, by the impugned judgment and order, the High Court has enhanced the amount of compensation to Rs.174/- per sq. ft. (more than 800% of the Reference Court compensation and about 1300% of the compensation awarded by the Land Acquisition Officer). 2.2 Feeling aggrieved and dissatisfied with the impugned judgment and order passed by the High Court enhancing the amount of compensation to Rs.174/- per sq. ft., BSNL has preferred the present appeal. 3. Shri R.D. Agrawala, learned Senior Advocate appearing on behalf of BSNL has vehemently submitted that the High Court has seriously erred in enhancing the amount of compensation solely rel ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... that in the present case while enhancing the compensation amount to Rs. 174/- per sq. ft., the High Court has rightly relied upon the Government Resolution and the Ready Reckoner. It is contended that the value of the land mentioned in the Ready Reckoner is a statutory cost and even the Government has issued a Resolution that while determining the amount of compensation, the price/value mentioned in the Ready Reckoner is required to be taken into consideration. 5.1 It is submitted that in the present case, the original claimants have relied upon the Government Resolution dated 31.10.1994 as well as the Ready Reckoner rates by examining the Assistant Town Planner as PW-4. 5.2 It is submitted that the Government Resolution dated 31.10.1994 makes it obligatory that on the date of the notification under Section 4 of the Land Acquisition Act, wherever, necessary, the capitalization method and/or the valuation as per the Ready Reckoner, whichever is higher, should be done at the time of market selection. It is submitted that the aforesaid Government Resolution provided the basis for the calculation of the market value for Ready Reckoner. It is submitted that Ready Reckoner is prepared ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... Act, the Ready Reckoner prices, which are for determination of the stamp duty can be considered or not, the High Court has not followed the aforesaid decisions of this Court, which were binding on the High Court under Article 141 of the Constitution of India. Therefore, High Court has seriously erred in not following the two decisions of this Court in the case of Jawajee Nagnatham (supra) and Krishi Utpadan Mandi Samiti, Sahaswan (supra). 8. Whether the prices mentioned in the Ready Reckoner can be the basis for determining the compensation for the lands acquired under the Land Acquisition Act has been dealt with by this Court in the two decisions of this Court in the case of Jawajee Nagnatham (supra) and Krishi Utpadan Mandi Samiti, Sahaswan (supra). In the case of Jawajee Nagnatham (supra), this Court has observed and held that the amount of compensation for the lands under the Land Acquisition Act is determined by adopting the method of valuation namely, (1) opinion of experts; (2) the price paid within a reasonable time in bona fide transactions of purchase of the lands acquired or the lands adjacent to the lands acquired and possessing similar advantages; and (3) a number of ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... nded the Act and enacted Section 47- A empowering the registering officer to levy stamp duty on instruments of conveyance, etc., if the registering officer has reason to believe that the market value of the property, covered by the conveyance, exchange, gift, release of right or settlement, has not been truly set forth in the instrument, he may refuse registering such instrument and refer the same to the Collector for determination of the market value of such property and the proper duty payable thereon. On receipt of such opinion, he may call upon the vendor as per the rules prescribed, to pay the additional duty thereon. If the vendor is dissatisfied, he has been given the right to file an appeal and further getting reference made to the High Court for decision in that behalf. Section 47-A would thus clearly show that the exercise of the power thereunder is with reference to a particular land covered by the instrument brought for registration. When he has reasons to believe it to be undervalued, he should get verified whether the market value was truly reflected in the instrument for the purpose of stamp duty; the Collector on reference could determine the same on the basis of th ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... at basis. The entire controversy was considered by yet another Division Bench in Vasireddi Bharata Rao v. Revenue Divisional Officer [(1992) 1 Andh LT 591]. The Division Bench, after considering the case law disagreeing with Sohan Lal [(1988) 2 Andh LT 306] view as per incuriam, also reiterated that the Basic Valuation Register maintained by the registering authority has no statutory foundation to determine the market value and cannot form the base under Section 23(1) to determine the market value. This Court in Gulzara Singh v. State of Punjab [(1993) 4 SCC 245] held that mutation entries of the land transactions in the revenue records are not evidence unless the parties to the transactions have been examined in proof of documents. In Director of Survey-cum-LAO v. Mohd. Ghouse [(1985) 1 MLJ 116] relied on by Mr Ganguli, the Division Bench of Madras High Court, relying upon the instructions issued by the Government to determine the market value for the purpose of registration of the instrument under Section 47-A, held that it would form basis to determine the market value under Section 23 in an appropriate case, subject to proof of the market value. What were the instructions issue ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... isition Act. It is required to be noted that in the present case, the Reference Court did consider the submission on behalf of the claimants to determine the market value on the basis of the Ready Reckoner. The Reference Court specifically refused to accept the same on appreciation of the deposition of PW-3. PW-3, a Government Officer specifically admitted that the Ready Reckoner was prepared for recovery of the proper stamp duty and the registration charges and that the actual rates of transaction of sales in market are different than the rates mentioned in the Ready Reckoner and that correct market prices cannot be reflected from the Ready Reckoner. Even PW-4 also specifically admitted in his deposition that the Ready Reckoner is prepared only for collecting stamp duty. The Refence court, therefore, rightly relied upon and followed the decisions of this Court in the case of Jawajee Nagnatham (supra) and Krishi Utpadan Mandi Samiti, Sahaswan (supra). 10. Why the prices mentioned in the Ready Reckoner, which is basically for the purpose of collecting proper stamp duty and registration charges shall not be the basis for determination of the compensation for the lands acquired ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... a reasonable price as on that day. It has also to be assumed that the vendor is willing to sell the land at a reasonable price. (7) In doing so by the instances method, the court has to correlate the market value reflected in the most comparable instance, which provides the index of market value. (8) Only genuine instances have to be taken into account. (Sometimes instances are rigged up in anticipation of acquisition of land.) (9) Even post-notification instances can be taken into account (1) if they are very proximate, (2) genuine, and (3) the acquisition itself has not motivated the purchaser to pay a higher price on account of the resultant improvement in development prospects. (10) The most comparable instances out of the genuine instances have to be identified on the following considerations: (i) proximity from time angle, (ii) proximity from situation angle. (11) Having identified the instances which provide the index of market value, the price reflected therein may be taken as the norm and the market value of the land under acquisition may be deduced by making suitable adjustments for the plus and minus factors vis-à-vis land under acquisition by placi ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... oner. 12. Now, so far as the reliance placed upon the Government Resolution dated 31.10.1994 by the claimants as well as the High Court is concerned, apart from the fact that the same is contrary to the law laid down by this Court in the aforesaid two decisions, what is mentioned in the said Government Resolution is that the Ready Reckoner is scientifically prepared by taking into account the geographical conditions of each area, major roads, railways, etc., as well as by inspecting the information of buying and selling transactions and that the Ready Reckoner rates are based on the talukas in rural areas and the urban areas in different parts of the city. As observed hereinabove, there cannot be a uniform market value of the land for the purpose of determination of the compensation for the lands acquired under the Land Acquisition Act. As observed herein above, the market value of the different lands vary from place to place and it depends upon various factors as observed hereinabove. 13. In view of the above and for the reasons stated above, present appeal succeeds. The impugned judgment and order passed by the High Court is hereby quashed and set aside and the judgment and or ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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