1988 PLP 936 (CLC)

‑‑‑Ss. 23(2) & 34‑‑Acquisition of land`‑Compensation; determination of‑‑Appellants/owners entitled to receive sum equivalent to fifteen per cent. of the amount of compensation in consideration of compulsory nature of acquisition, had not been paid by Government on or before, taking possession of acquired land‑‑Government, held, was liable to pay compound interest from date of taking over possession till payment of amount of compensation. Taqi Ahinad Khan for Appellants. M.M. Saeed Beg for Respondents. Date of hearing: 16th November, 1987. This appeal against the judgment of the learned Senior Civil Judge, Sialkot, dated the 10th April, 1983, dismissing the reference made on the application of the appellant for enhancement of the amount of compensation awarded by the Collector for acquisition of their land arises out of the following circumstances. The 'Provincial Government acquired 75 Kanals 19 Marlas of land entered in Khasras Nos. 2418, 2419, 2433 to 2436, 2438 to 2444, situate in the area of Narowal estate, Tehsil Narowal, District Sialkot, for the purpose of construction of Wing Headquarters of Chenab Rangers. Notification under section 4 of the Land Acquisition .Act, 1894, was published in the official Gazette on the 30th December, 1974. The owners of the land put forth before the Land Acquisition Collector the demand of compensation at the rate pf Ra.90,000 per Kanal. The Land Acquisition Collector announced his award an the 2nd January, 1980, giving compensation at the rate of Rs.3,040 per Kanal and Rs.13,050 in respect‑ of the house belonging to Mst. Ghulam Fatima, one of the, owners of the land. The appellants, who owned 74 Kanals 18 Marlas of land out of the acquired land, did not accept the award and moved the Collector requiring the matter to be referred to the Court for determining the true amount of compensation. They alleged that the land was situate in close vicinity of Narowal town on the border of Pacca road from Sialkot to Narowal at the point where a road branched off to Shakargarh. They claimed that it was potentially commercial and residential land and its market value was Rs.90,000 per Kanal.

2. The respondents gave a lie to the exaggerated claim of the appellants and insisted that the compensation awarded to them was adequate and just.

3. The learned Senior Civil Judge ,formed the view that the appellants had not been able to make out a case for ordering increase in the amount of compensation assessed by the Collector. He was not favourably impressed by the evidence produced by the appellants. Feeling aggrieved they have approached this Court in appeal.

4. The documentary evidence produced by the appellants consists of copies of three sale‑deeds Exhs. P.1, P.2 and P.3. Half a Maria of land for building a shop was sold for Rs.9,000 on the 18th February, 1979, through the sale‑deed whose copy is Exh. P.1, Exh. P.2 recites sale of half a Marla of land for construction of shop for Rs.9,000 accomplished on the 2nd March, 1980. By means of Exh. P.3, 2‑3/4 Marlas of land was sold for raising a house thereon for Rs.10,000 on the 28th February, 1981. The prices of these small pieces of land, situate in Narowal town, sold for building purposes five or six years after the acquisition, do not furnish a good guide for finding out the market value of the land in dispute, which was agricultural in character and lay away from the Abadi of Narowal town. Price of, land registered an appreciable increase over a period of five or six years after the acquisition of the land in question. Consequently these sale‑deeds are of little help to determine the market value of the propetty in dispute prevailing on the 30th December, 1974. They have rightly been brushed aside by the learned trial Court.

5. The oral evidence consisting of the bare statements of three witnesses, including that of Ali Hassan, appellant No. 3, asserting the market value of the land at Rs.90,000 per Kanal cannot be accepted at face value. In the absence of cogent documentary evidence the learned trial Court was justified to decline to place reliance upon the oral statements of the appellant's witnesses. Left in field was the award given by the Collector which could not be disturbed.

6. The learned counsel for the appellants made grievance of the fact that neither the Land Acquisition Collector nor the learned trial Court awarded a sum equivalent to fifteen per cent of the amount of compensation in consideration of compulsory nature of acquisition. The learned counsel for the respondents conceded that the appellants were entitled to receive the aforesaid amount under section 23 (2) of the Land Acquisition Act.

7. The contention of the learned counsel for the appellants that since the amount of compensation awarded by the Collector had not been paid or deposited on or before taking possession of the land, the appellants had the right to get compound interest at the rate of eight per cent per annum from the time of taking possession till the payment or deposit of the said amount of compensation could not be disputed by the learned counsel for the respondents. It is true that the amount of compensation assessed by the Collector in the award was not paid or deposited on or before the Government took over possession of the land. This renders the Government liable to pay compound interest at the rate of eight per cent per annum from the date of taking over possession till the payment or deposit of the amount of compensation as envisaged by section 34 of the Land Acquisition Act.

8. In view of the above this appeal is partially accepted with costs and the judgment under appeal is modified to the extent that the appellants will recover a sum of fifteen per cent of the amount of compensation in consideration of compulsory nature of acquisition as well as compound interest at the rate of eight per cent per annum on the amount of compensation from the time of taking over possession of the land till the payment or deposit of the aforesaid amount. H.B.T./S‑147/LI???? ???????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? Order accordingly.