MANDTR SITA RAMJI Vs. I T GOVERNOR OH DELHI

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The appellant filed a writ petition before the High Court of Delhi for quashing a notification dated November 7, 1968, issued under S.6 of the Land Acquisition Act, 1894 (hereinafter called the Rs. Act'). A learned Single Judge of the Court quashed the notification mainly on the ground that the Land Acquisition Collector gave no opportunity to the appellant of being heard in respect of the objections filed under S.5A of the Act. The respondent (Lt. Governor of Delhi) filed a letters patent appeal before a Division Bench. The division Bench allowed the appeal. This appeals by certificate, has been filed against that judgment.

(2.) The Delhi Administration issued a notification under Section 4 of the Act on November 13, 1959 stating that land measuring about 34070 acres was needed for a public purpose. The notification specifically excluded from its purview "land under graveyards, tombs, shrines and the land attached to religious institutions and wakf property". The appellant, a society registered under the Societies Registration Act 21 of 1960 filed an objection under S.5A of the Act in respect of 324 bighas of land in village Karkar Duma. The objection was that the land in question belonged to a religious trust viz. Mandir Sita Ramji, and was exempted from the purview of the notification. The Collector submitted his report on the objection to the Delhi Administration on August 18, 1962 and thereafter on November 7, 1968, the Delhi Administration issued the declaration under S.6 of the Act including the land in respect of which Mandir Sita Ramji had filed objection under S.5A of the Act.

(3.) The objection filed by the appellant before the Land Acquisition collector was not traceable in the office of the Land Acquisition collector. But on the date fixed for hearing viz. July 27, 1962, a copy of the objection was found in the records on which there was the following endorsement: