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Judgment
Vijay Manohar Sahai, J.—Though this appeal has been admitted, only civil application No. 2623 of 2011 has been listed today. Counsel for the parties jointly prayed that instead of deciding the Civil Application, since main appeal is also on the board which shall be decided. On the request made by the learned counsel for the parties instead of deciding Civil Application we have taken the Letters Patent Appeal No. 384 of 2011 itself for final disposal. We have heard Mr. S.P. Majmudar learned counsel for the appellant and Mr. Ravi Karnavat, learned advocate appearing for the respondents.
This Letters Patent Appeal has been filed challenging the judgment passed by the learned Single Judge on 17th January 2011 in Special Civil Application No. 6097 of 2010.
The facts in brief are that the respondent Railway Authorities published a Gazette notification dated 10.02.2009 for acquiring the land of the appellant bearing revenue survey No. 448 Paiki 1, at village Chadotal, Taluka Palanpur, District Banaskantha, exercising the powers conferred under 20-A(1) of the Railways Act, 1989, declaring their intention of acquiring the land. This notification was also published in the News Paper on 27th February 2009. A further notification was published on 24th February 2010 in the Gazette u/s 20-E(3) of the Act. It is not disputed by the learned counsel for the respondents that though the notification had been published but no award has been made till date and therefore, the entire acquisition proceedings have lapsed u/s 20-F(2) of the Railways Act, 1989, which shows if the award was not made within a period of one year from the date on which the publication of declaration about the entire proceedings for the acquisition of land, the proceedings have lapsed.
According to the counsel for the respondents the competent authority did not extend any period as the alignment was changed by the Railways themselves.
We need not enter into the question which was argued before the learned Single Judge. Admittedly the Land Acquisition Proceedings have changed. For the aforesaid reason, this Appeal succeed and is allowed. The order passed by the Learned Single Judge dated 17th January 2011 passed in Special Civil Application No. 6097 of 2010 as well as the entire land acquisition proceedings are quashed as they have lapsed u/s 20-F(2) of the Railways Act 1989.
Parties shall bear their own costs.