- (1.) Leave granted.
(2.) An extent of 1,06,864 sq.m. of land including 5070 sq.m. of land in Survey No. 284 (Part) in Pernem village of which the appellants are co- owners was acquired in pursuance of preliminary notification dated 12.1.1990 (Gazetted on 1.2.1990). By award dated 27.3.1991, the Land Acquisition Officer awarded compensation for the acquired land at the rate of Rs.17 per sq.m. As there were three tenants, namely, Krishna Arjun Kauthankar, Keshav Bhikaji Kauthankar and Harischandra Bhikaji Kauthankar and as the co-owners had admitted their tenancy rights, the Land Acquisition Officer directed that the compensation to be divided between the owners and the tenants at the rate of 50% each. The reference court, by judgment daed 22.11.2002, increased the compensation from Rs.17 per sq.m. to Rs.175 per sq.m. The appeal by the State was allowed by a division bench of the Bombay High Court, by the impugned judgment dated 14.11.2008. The High Court set aside the judgment and award of the reference court, thereby restoring the award of Rs.17/- per sq.m. by the Land Acquisition Officer, on the following reasoning: "the Applicants' acquired portion was garden land but tenanted and the tenants had become deemed purchasers of the same and the only interest which the applicants had in the said land was to receive the purchase price, and in such a case no willing purchaser would have ventured to purchase such a land for building purposes or for that matter for any other purpose from the applicants. The said Krishna Arjun Kauthankar and others were in possession of the land and had become deemed owners of the same. The learned reference court was not right in assessing the value of the acquired land as having building potential based on several awards/sale instances which were of land dissimilar to the acquired land."
(3.) The said judgment is challenged in this appeal by special leave. At the outset the appellants submitted that Late Rajinder Vasdev Deshprabhu (of whom appellants are the LRs.) and his brother late Raghuraj Vasdev Deshprabhu were the co-owners of the property, and on their death their respective legal heirs have become the owners thereof; that the land was tenanted and is in occupation of Krishan Arjun Kauthankar and two others and vested in the tenants on the Tiller's day in terms of section 18A of the Goa, Daman and Diu Agricultural Tenancy Act, 1964 ('Tenancy Act' for short). They submitted that they do not dispute the award of the Land Acquisition Officer apportioning 50% of the compensation to the landlords and 50% to the tenants; and that out of 50% payable to landlords, the appellants are entitled to one half as the LRs. of Rajendra V.Deshprabhu and the remaining half is payable to the legal heirs of Raghuraj V.Deshprabhu. In other words the appellants restrict their claim to 25% of the award amount and submitted that even in regard to any increase in compensation, they are entitled to only 25%.;