JUDGEMENT
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(1.)Delay condoned in S.L.P. (C) Nos.15847-15855 of 2010. Leave granted.
(2.)In these 18 appeals, by special leave, it is argued on behalf of the respondents-landowners that in view of Section 24(2) of The Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013 (for short, '2013 Act') which has come into effect on 01.01.2014, the subject land acquisition proceedings initiated under the Land Acquisition Act, 1894 (for short, '1894 Act') have lapsed. The question for decision relates to true meaning of the expression: "compensation has not been paid" occurring in Section 24(2) of the 2013 Act.
(3.)It may not be necessary at all to go into the legality and correctness of the impugned judgment, if the subject land acquisition proceedings are held to have lapsed. We, therefore, deal with this aspect first.