IN THE HIGH COURT OF KERALA AT ERNAKULAM PRESENT : THE HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE T.R.RAMACHANDRAN NAIR MONDAY, THE 2ND AUGUST 2010 / 11TH SRAVANA 1932 WP(C).No. 20876 of 2010(H) -------------------------------- PETITIONER: -------------- VIKRAMAN PILLAI.C., ARUNIMA, THRIKKADAVOOR, PERINAD P.O., KOLLAM 691 601. BY MR.B.SURESH KUMAR, ADVOCATE. RESPONDENTS: ------------------ 1. THE STATE OF KERALA, REPRESENTED BY ITS SECRETARY, TO THE REVENUE DEPARTMENT, GOVERNMENT SECRETARIAT, THIRUVANANTHAPURAM 2. THE DISTRICT COLLECTOR, KOLLAM. 3. THE SPECIAL TAHSILDAR (LA), NO.II, RAILWAYS, KOLLAM 691 001. BY MS. K.R. DEEPA, GOVERNMENT PLEADER FOR R3. THIS WRIT PETITION (CIVIL) HAVING COME UP FOR ADMISSION ON 02/08/2010, THE COURT ON THE SAME DAY DELIVERED THE FOLLOWING: T.R. RAMACHANDRAN NAIR, J. --------------------------------------- W.P.(C) No.20876 OF 2010 --------------------------------------- Dated this the 2nd day of August, 2010. J U D G M E N T The petitioner seeks for a direction to the respondents to refer the application for reference under Section 18(1) of the Land Acquisition Act. 2. Exhibit P1 is the application said to have been submitted before the Special Tahsildar, Land Acquisition Railway No.1, Kollam by the petitioner and the date therein is shown as 06.03.1997. It is the case of the petitioner that even though the applications of the similarly placed persons have been referred, no action was taken with regard to the petitioner's application. By Exhibit P2, the petitioner was given a reply that the application is not seen referred to the civil court and this reply was given by the 3rd respondent herein as the office of the Special Tahsildar, Land Acquisition Railway No.1, Kollam was abolished. Finally the petitioner was given a reply as per Exhibit P4 stating that after perusing the records of the office of W.P.(C) No.20876/2010 2 the Special Tahsildar, Land Acquisition Railway No.1, Kollam, the application said to have been filed by the petitioner is not seen registered and is not received by the said office. The petitioner was also given a reply by the District Collector as per Exhibit P6. 3. The 3rd respondent has filed a counter affidavit. A reply affidavit is also filed by the petitioner. Learned counsel for the petitioner submitted that the files kept in the office will show that the application has been duly submitted and it was assigned a number namely, Page No.53 which is indicated in the copy produced by the petitioner as Exhibit P1 in the right hand side top. It is, therefore, submitted that somebody had manipulated the files to remove the application itself. 4. The above contentions are opposed by the learned Government Pleader by referring to the counter affidavit filed by the 3rd respondent. The stand taken in the counter affidavit is that no such application is seen registered in the concerned Registers and therefore, the application Exhibit P1 could not be referred to the civil court under Section 18 of the Act. 5. Since there is a serious dispute with regard to the W.P.(C) No.20876/2010 3 factual position, it is only proper that the matter is enquired into by the District Collector with notice to the petitioner. The valuable right of the petitioner to get an adjudication under Section 18 will be lost if the stand of the respondents are accepted. In that view of the matter, there will be a direction to the 2nd respondent to conduct an enquiry, with notice to the petitioner, with regard to the question whether the application has been submitted duly in the office of the Special Tahsildar, Land Acquisition Railway No.1, Kollam and appropriate orders will be passed after verifying all the records maintained in the various offices. Final decision will be taken within a period of two months from the date of receipt of a copy of this judgment. This writ petition is disposed of as above. T.R. RAMACHANDRAN NAIR JUDGE smp