- (1.) The bunch of cases relate to acquisition of property of 45.15 acres in Maheshpur that became a part of Panchkula city later. The litigations are with reference to determination of compensation for acquisition made through a notification issued on 21.12.1994 under Section 4 of the Land Acquisition Act. The Land Acquisition Collector had determined a compensation of Rs. 4 lacs per acre and on a reference under Section 18 of the Land Acquisition Act, compensation was raised to Rs. 500/- per square yard. The land owners are in appeal before this Court seeking for further enhancement of compensation on the ground that the determination has been made without reference to the documents of sale, which have been brought for consideration before the Reference Court.
(2.) The transactions of sale, which the land owners have referred to have been prodigious but I will confine them only with reference to those transactions in the immediate vicinity of Section 4 notification. The State has also relied on substantial documentary evidence relating to transactions brought about the same period and predictable for prices which are far lesser than what prices the land owners show as the ruling price. There could be a combined tabulation of transactions relating to the properties relied on by the land owners as well as by the State: JUDGEMENT_354_LAWS(P&H)10_2012_1.html
(3.) The learned counsel appearing on behalf of the land owners would contend that if an average valuation of these properties must be taken, it works out to Rs. 1037/- per square yard and considering the fact that they are small extent of properties, there could be an appropriate cut imposed. The learned counsel, Sh. Sharma would argue that reference to transactions contained in small extents are themselves not anathema to the scheme of determination of compensation in view of the decisions that have come about from the Supreme Court. According to him, the transactions themselves were fair for ever since the development started taking place for creation of Panchkula city and it is gradual method over a period of time. There had been notifications coming over a period of time from the year 1971 itself that made impermissible the private transactions of sale. The counsel would, therefore, contend that inevitably the extents of properties, which have been dealt with are only with reference to small extents of properties and it will not be possible to fish out transactions of large extent of properties as similar in extents of properties, which are acquired from the individual land owners. According to him, therefore, the determination could safely be done with reference to the sale prices reflected through the above transactions relied on by the land owners after providing for appropriate cut. Even if a 50% cut were to be imposed, the value of the property would still be Rs. 500/- per square yard. He would pitch it to the lowest price possible by taking the cut as high as 85% to say that it would still work out to Rs. 582/- per square yard.;