- (1.) THIS appeal is directed against the judgment and decree dated 30th July, 1965 passed by learned Special l. A. Judge, Alipore in L. D. P. Case No. 64 of 1964 (V) arising out of a reference under section 18 of the Land Acquisition Act, 1894 read with West Bengal Land Development and Planning Act, 1948 (Act 21 of 1948) against the Collector's award in L. D. P. Case No. 18 of 1956. It is an admitted position that 2. 447 acres of solid land and. 413 acre land appertaining to tank, measuring in all 2. 86 acres, in mouza Baderaipur, within Police Station Tollygunge in the District of 24 Parganas (now south 24-Parganas) were acquired for public purpose, namely, for settlement of immigrants under the West Bengal Land Development and Planning act, 1948. Such acquisition was made by a Notification dated 17th July, 1956 under section 4 of the said Act and published in the Calcutta Gazette. Under the provisions of the West Bengal Land Development and planning Act, 1948 the compensations was payable according to the market value of the land as on 31st December, 1946. Against the award made by the Collector for the said acquisition, a reference under section 18 of the Land Acquisition Act was made and the learned Special L. A. Judge in the said L. D. P. Case No. 64 of 1964 (V), inter alia, came to the finding that the market value of the said land on 31st December, 1946 was Rs. 700/- per cottah for solid land and Rs. 350/- per cottah for the land appertaining to the tank. The learned L. A. Judge on that basis, therefore, held that the respondent was entitled to get compensation at the said rate and it was also held by the learned Judge that the respondent was entitled to get interest at the rate of 6 per cent per annum on enhanced value from the date of possession, namely, from 27th December 1957, until payment is made in Court. It appears that the claimant respondent made a prayer for solatium under section 23 (2) but such prayer was disallowed by the learned Special Judge. The State of West Bengal has, thereafter, preferred the instant appeal and the claimant respondent, namely, Messrs. Central Land and Building Society Ltd. , has preferred a cross-objection against the decision of the learned L. A. Judge, inter alia, contending that they are entitled to get a much higher valuation for the acquired land and they are also entitled to solatium under section 23 (2) of the Land Acquisition Act.
(2.) IT may be noted in this connection that in a Bench decision of this Court made in the case of Monoranjan Routh and Ors. v. State of West Bengal, reported in 76 CWN 971, it was held that the provisions of the West Bengal Land Development and Planning Act in so far as it reduced solatium of 15 per cent payable under the Land Acquisition act was ultra vires of the Constitution as the same offended Article 14 of the Constitution. Later on, another Division Bench of this Court in the case of Ramendra Nath Nandi v. State of West Bengal, reported in 79 CWN 593, held that valuation for acquisition of land under the said West Bengal Land Developmemt and Planning Act, 1948 was not to be made with reference to 31st December, 1946 and such provision was also ultra vires and it was decided that such valuation should be made on the date of acquisition, namely, when the notification for acquisition has been published in the gazette. The learned Counsel appearing for the appellant, State of West Bengal, has submitted before us that after such decision valuation for acquisition under the said West Bengal Land development and Planning Act is being made with reference to the market value of the land as on the date of notification under section 4 and the solatium of 15 per cent as payable far acquisition under the Land Acquisition act, 1894 is also being paid for such acquisition. In the present case, the dispute arose as to what was the market value of the acquired lands on 8th August, 1956, namely, the date of publication of the notification under section 4 of the said Act. It has been contended by Mr. Bakshi, learned counsel for the claimant respondent that price of land in and around the city of Calcutta had appreciated very rapidly after the communal riot in 1946 and after partition of this country in 1947. Mr. Bakshi has submitted before us that the Supreme Court in its decision made in the case of Mathur Prosad Ragharia v. State of West Bengal, reported in AIR 1971 SC 465, has noted that these had been considerable appreciation of the price of land between 1941 and 1946 and influx of refugees during the said period was also noted by the Supreme Court. Mr. Bakshi has submitted that the value of the land considerably appreciated even after 1946 and more so after 1947 because of the partition of the country and such fact was also judicially noted by this Court in the case of Nakul Chandra Dutta v. Ajit Kumar Chakraborty and Ors. reported in 86 CWN 866.
(3.) MR. Bakshi has also submitted that the acquired lands were situated near Jadavpur Railways Station and was just behind the present state Transport Bus Terminus. The said area is now within the limits of the Calcutta Corporation and in 1956 the said area was quite developed and the lands in that locality fetched high price. In the aforesaid facts, this Court can take judicial notice of the changed circumstances. Mr. Bakshi has also submitted that even on modest estimation the market price of the land in question in 1956 must be held to be double the price which it could fetch in December, 1946. Accordingly even on the basis of the valuation made by the learned Special Judge, it must be held that the price of the solid land in 1956 when the notification was published was Rs. 1,400/- per cottah and the price of the land appertaining to tank was Rs. 700/- per cottah in stead of Rs. 700/- and Rs. 350/- per cottah respectively which were the values of the said lands in December, 1946 as held by the learned Special Judge. Mr. Bakshi has contended that the cross-objection should be allowed and the award of compensation should be on the basis of valuation of solid land at the rate of Rs. 1,400/-per cottah and of land appertaining to tank at the rate of Rs. 700/- per cottah.;