The Land Acquisition Officer Bangalore Development Authority Bangalore and The Commissioner Bangalore Development Authority vs Bommanna Gowda

D.V. Shylendra Kumar, J.—This appeal is filed u/s 54(1) of the Land Acquisition Act, 1894 (for short ''the Act'') is directed against the judgment and award dated 8.3.2006 passed in LAC No. 166/2001 on the file of II Addl. City Civil and Sessions Judge at Bangalore, CCH No. 17. The 1st appellant is the Land Acquisition Officer attached to the Bangalore Development Authority for whose benefit the State Government had acquired vast extent of lands by resorting to the provisions of the Bangalore Development Authority Act, 1976, and amongst such lands figured the land belonging to the respondent measuring an extent of 1 acre 1 gunta in Sy. No. 19 of Kondadasapura Village and acquired under Preliminary Notifications dated 10.03.1994 and 24.03.1994 for the purpose of shifting "Wholesale Steel Market" from its existing place to the place where the said lands were acquired or located.

In due course the Bangalore Development Authority has filed this appeal being aggrieved by the enhancement of compensation by the Reference Court in a reference u/s 18 of the Act, at the instance of the land owner, enhancing the value from Rs. 4,00,000/- to Rs. 6,00,000/ -per acre. The reference court for such enhancement taking note of the judgment that it had basis in LAC No. 35/2001, which was the reference at the instance of a similarly situated owner, whose lands also had come to be acquired under the very notification and seeing that the value had been determined at Rs. 6,00,000/- in that reference case, following the same, enhanced the quantum of compensation payable to the respondent from Rs. 4,00,000/- as determined by Land Acquisition Officer to Rs. 6,00,000/- per acre.

Sri S.G. Hegde, learned counsel appearing for the appellant very clearly submits that the BDA had occasion to question the award passed by the reference court in other LAC No. 45/2001 before this Court by filing a like MFA No. 8439/2005 and this court on examination of the appeal remanded the matter to the reference court for looking into the matter and redetermination of the compensation amount and the reference court on such remand has again looked into the matter and disposed of the reference, but yet again confirmed the value at Rs. 6,00,000/- per acre.

Mr. Hegde, learned counsel also submits that the BDA has accepted this value in respect, of other land owners, whose lands were acquired in the very notification and therefore, submits that the appellants accepted that position, even in respect of present appeal also.

In the light of the BDA having accepted the compensation payable to the land owners in the area acquired under the notifications dated 10.3.1994 and 24.3.1994 to be paid at Rs. 6,00,000/- and that amount having been paid to many of the land owners, we do not find any need or justification to interfere in this appeal to oppose the rate of compensation. The respondent will be entitled for the same compensation in terms of the compensation paid to the other land owners in the area. Accordingly, this appeal is dismissed.