Dr. B. S. Chauhan, J. - (1.) THE instant petition has been filed by the petitioner for issuing a mandamus to the respondent No. 5, the Special Land Acquisition Officer, Ghaziabad to dispose of the applications filed by the petitioners under Section 28A of the Land Acquisition Act, 1894 (hereinafter called the Act).
(2.) THE petitioners' land was acquired along with the land of the others by issuing a notification under Section 4 of the Act on 16.7.60 (Annexure 2 to the writ petition). Declaration under Section 6 of the Act was issued in respect of the land in question on 20.5.62 (Annexure 3 to the writ petition) and the petitioners had been dispossessed from the land on 16.4.65 though the award under Section 11 of the Act was made on 18.9.77. THE petitioners case is that they did nob file the references under Section 18 of the Act. THE L.A.R. No. 304/77 "Hemchand and others v. State of U. P. and others" was decided by the reference court vide award dated 31.3.87 Annexure 4 to the writ petition. THE petitioners preferred their applications under Section 28A of the Act promptly for re-determination of compensation in respect of their respective plots of land which had been acquired by the same notification under which the land which had been the subject-matter of L. A. R. No. 304 of 1977 was acquired. The grievance of the petitioners is that the applications are pending for such a long time and the respondent No. 5 is not proceeding with the hearing of the said applications in spite of the fact that the award under Section 18 of the Act in the case of Hemchand (supra) had become final. Heard Shri B. B. Paul, learned counsel for the petitioners and learned Standing Counsel on behalf of the respondents and perused the documents filed along with the writ petition.
(3.) IN spite of the fact that time was granted on 4.8.95 for filing counter- affidavit to the learned standing counsel, but the same has not been filed till date. Section 28A was inserted in the Act by amendment Act No. 68 of 1984 and it provides for re-determination of the amount of compensation on the basis of the award of the court in respect of a land which has also been acquired in the same land acquisition proceedings, if the applications are filed within a period of three months from the date of the award of the court.;