High Court
Case Details
Neutral Citation No. - 2025:AHC:81465 Court No. - 37
Legal Reasoning
Appellant :- Union of India Respondent :- Shri Satya Narayan Jain And 8 Others Counsel for Appellant :- Rajnish Kumar Rai,Sudarshan Singh Counsel for Respondent :- Ashok Kumar Tripathi Hon'ble Dinesh Pathak,J. 1. Learned counsel for the claimant-respondent Nos. 1/1 to 1/6 and learned Standing Counsel for the State-respondent Nos. 2 and 3 are present. 2. Instant appeal has been preferred on behalf of the Union of India assailing the judgment and award dated 08.10.2021 passed by Additional District Judge/Presiding Officer, U.P.A.E.V.P Tribunal, Civil Court, Agra in Land Acquisition Case No. 1 of 2020 filed on behalf of the claimants-respondents. Instant appeal is admitted by order dated 24.05.2022. 3. Perusal of the judgment under challenge evinces that sufficient area was acquired for the construction of Agra-Etawa Railway Line. Pursuant thereto, notice under Section 4 (1)/17 of Land Acquisition Act, 1894 was issued on 11.02.2002 and declaration under Section 6/17 of the Land Acquisition Act was issued lastly on 18.09.2002. 4. The possession of the land involved with the matter was taken on 07.03.2003 and award was made on 10.09.2023 under Section 11 of the Land Acquisition Act. Having been aggrieved with the award, claimants-respondents have filed detailed objection and the matter was referred under Section 18 of the Land Acquisition Act, 1894. 5. Learned counsel for the appellant submits that same notification and award has already been adjudicated upon by Hon'ble Division Bench of this Court in First Appeal No. 234 of 2018 and First Appeal No. 721 of 2018 by judgment dated 15.03.2021. Thus, on the aforesaid premise, instant first appeal may be decided as well. 6. The counsel for the claimants-respondents have no objection to the submission advanced by the learned counsel for the appellant. He has admitted that the notification and the award in question is already adjudicated upon by this Court previously in the batch of first appeals, leading being First Appeal No. 827 of 2018 (The Deputy Chief Engineer, Construction-II Vs. State of UP) by order dated 23.04.2019 passed by co-ordinate Bench of this Court. Subsequently, aforesaid order dated 23.04.2019 passed by co- ordinate Bench has been relied upon by Division Bench of this Court in Appeal No. 234 of 2018 and First Appeal No. 721 of 2018. For ready reference, order dated 15.03.2021 passed by Division Bench of this Court in aforesaid First Appeal No. 234 of 2018 and First Appeal No. 721 of 2018 is quoted herein below:- "We find that the present first appeal has been filed by the Railway Board challenging the judgment and order dated 28.11.2017 passed by the learned Additional District Judge/Presiding Officer, U.P.A.E. V.P. Tribunal, Civil Courts, Agra in Land Acquisition Case No. 586/2004 (Shri Vikas Jain Vs. State of U.P. through Collector, Agra and 2 others). The connected First Appeal No. 721of 2018 has been preferred by the Railway Board against the judgment and order dated 7.3.2018 passed by learned Additional District and Sessions Judge/Presiding Officer, U.P.A.E. V.P. Tribunal, Civil Lines, Agra in Land Acquisition Case No. 574/2004 (Shri Dharmesh Kumar Shivhare Vs. State of U.P. through Collector, Agra and 3 others). With the consent of the learned counsel for both the parties, both these appears are taken up together for final disposal. It is stated by the learned counsels for the appellants that the learned Single Judge of this Court in First Appeal No. 827 of 2018, vide judgment and order dated 23.04.2019, which arose out of the same land acquisition, has already decided the lis between the parties and they want that the present appeal also be decided in the light of the said judgement and order passed by the learned Single Judge. It is not disputed by the counsel for the respondents that the compensation which has been determined in the First Appeal No. 827 of 2018, is determined in the instant First Appeal No. 234 of 2018 and the connected First Appeal No. 721 of 2018. Para - 10 of the judgment and order passed by the learned Single Judge in the First Appeal No. 827 of 2018 reads as under:- "10. Since, learned counsels for the parties have agreed that the impugned judgment may be modified determining compensation @ Rs. 1,200/- per sq. meter, therefore, the impugned judgments are accordingly modified and it is held that the claimants shall be entitled to compensation @ Rs. 1,200/- per sq. meter along with other statutory benefits as has been granted by the court below." 7. In view of the consent given by the learned counsel for the parties, we have not delved into the facts of the two connected appeals and both these appeals are decided in the light of the judgement of the learned Single Judge of this Court delivered on 23.04.2019 in the First Appeal No. 827 of 2018. We also clarify that the said judgment has attained finality and it is accepted by the learned counsel for the parties appearing in the present two appeals. 8. The impugned judgment in the two appeals will stand modified to the same effect and value as has been held by the learned Single Judge in respect to the First Appeal No. 827 of 2018. The decree drawn in regard to the land acquisition matter of the present two appeals shall also stand modified to the same effect and value. 9. Accordingly, both the appeals filed by the Railways are partly allowed to the extent as agreed by the learned counsel for the parties. The impugned judgment and orders in the both these appeals are modified determining the compensation @ Rs. 1,200/- per sq. meter and it is held that the claimants shall be entitled to the compensation @ Rs. 1,200/- per sq. meter along with other statutory benefits as has been granted by the learned Court below. 10. It is made clear that the remaining amount under the impugned judgment and orders shall be deposited by the Railway Board within 12 weeks from today in both the appeals." 11. It is admitted to both the parties that the judgment/award under challenge has been passed in view of the ratio decided by co- ordinate Bench of this Court, vide order dated 23.04.2019, in First Appeal No. 827 of 2018. Therefore, nothing remains disputed between the parties. 12. In this conspectus, as above, no dispute remains between the parties in view of the consent given by the claimants-respondents on the basis of the judgments dated 23.04.2019 and 15.03.2021, as mentioned above, therefore, instant first appeal filed on behalf of the appellant (Union of India) stand dismissed with no orders as to the costs. However, appellant is directed to deposit the enhanced amount decided by the Tribunal within a period of two months from today. Order Date :- 16.5.2025 vinay Digitally signed by :- VINAY KUMAR High Court of Judicature at Allahabad