Summary
Landowners sought compensation above Rs.4 lakh per acre for land in Sohana acquired under the 26 October 1990 notification. The Court upheld reliance on a final award for Lakhnaur land acquired by the same notification. The proposed comparators involved a village not adjoining Sohana, an award under appeal, or a later acquisition affected by intervening development. The appeals were dismissed.
Issues
- Whether awards for other villages or later acquisitions justified enhancement of the compensation for the 1990 acquisition.
Held
- The maps, including the landowners’ own layout, showed that Kambali and Kambala were not adjoining Sohana. The Kambali award was therefore unsuitable as a valuation guide on this record. The Court declined to discuss the award for the July 1991 acquisition while its appeal remained pending. (¶¶ 5, 7, 10-11, 14)
- The November 1993 valuation could not be mechanically reduced to value the earlier acquisition: development arising from the earlier acquisitions affected the later price. This was not simply a matter of applying a percentage change. The Court’s alternative calculation applying 10% yearly growth to the 1981 award also yielded less than the compensation already allowed; it did not prescribe a universal escalation rate. (¶ 12-17)
- With no relevant sale instances, the final Rs.4 lakh-per-acre award for Lakhnaur land acquired under the same notification furnished the appropriate basis here. Neither side had appealed that determination, and the High Court’s reliance on it warranted no interference. (¶¶ 9, 13-14, 18)
Result
Appeals dismissed; the compensation of Rs.4 lakh per acre upheld by the High Court remained undisturbed.