IN THE HIGH COURT OF KERALA AT ERNAKULAM PRESENT : THE HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE PIUS C.KURIAKOSE & THE HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE K.HARILAL TUESDAY, THE 29TH NOVEMBER 2011 / 8TH AGRAHAYANA 1933 LA.App..No. 501 of 2008 --------------------------- LAR.118/2002 of SUB COURT, CHERTHALA .................... APPELLANT(S): CLAIMANT: ------------------------------ MATHAN JOSEPH, PULLATTU THEKKEVALAYARA, PALLIPURAM. BY ADV. SRI.JOSHI N.THOMAS RESPONDENT(S): RESPONDENTS: -------------------------------------- 1. STATE OF KERALA, REPRESENTED BY THE SPECIAL TAHSILDAR (LA), INDUSTRIAL GROWTH CENTRE, CHERTHALA. 2. THE MANAGING DIRECTOR, KSIDC, THIRUVANANTHAPURAM. ADV. SRI.D.KRISHNANKUTTY PILLAI FOR R2 SRI.SHEEJO CHACKO FOR R2 SR. GOVT. PLEADER SRI.C.R.SHYAMKUMAR THIS LAND ACQUISITION APPEAL HAVING BEEN FINALLY HEARD ON 29/11/2011, ALONG WITH LAA NO.562 OF 2008 & LAA NO.666 OF 2008 THE COURT ON THE SAME DAY DELIVERED THE FOLLOWING: PIUS C. KURIAKOSE & K. HARILAL, JJ. ------------------------------------------------ L. A. A. Nos.501, 562 & 666 of 2008 ------------------------------------------------ Dated this the 29th day of November, 2011 JUDGMENT Pius C. Kuriakose, J These appeals are preferred by the claimant whose properties were acquired pursuant to Section 4(1) notification published on 24/01/97 for the purpose of establishment of the Industrial Growth Centre at Pallipuram, Cherthala. The Land Acquisition Officer included the properties under acquisition in category-2 dry land with no direct frontage of the main road. The Land Acquisition Officer awarded land value at the rate of ` 10,950/- per Are. The Reference Court under the impugned awards would re- fix the value of the land under acquisition at ` 19,760/- per Are. The ground which is raised and urged before us prominently is that the Land Acquisition Officer and the Reference Court were not justified in treating the land under acquisition as land falling in category-2. What is urged is L. A. A. No.501/08 & con. cases -2- that the acquired property of the appellant included by the Land Acquisition Officer and the court in category-2 was situated adjacent to appellant's other properties which lay abutting the Ottappunna-Thvanakkadavu main road. There is a specific contention raised in the claim statement that the very decision of the respondents not to acquire the appellant's properties which were enjoying direct frontage was with the intention of denying to the appellant the benefit of his property being included in category-1 and him being awarded the rate admissible to property in category-1 for which this Court has now finally fixed the value at the rate of ` 29,982/- per Are. 2. Having considered the various grounds raised in the memoranda of appeals and the submissions addressed at the Bar by Sri.Joshi N. Thomas, the counsel for the appellant Sri.Joby Cyriac and Sri.Shiju Chacko, the counsel for the Requisitioning Authority and Sri.C.R.Shyamkumar, the learned Senior Government Pleader for the Government and having made a quick survey of the evidence available on L. A. A. No.501/08 & con. cases -3- record, we are of the view that the appellant's claim that his acquired property should have been included in category-1 did not receive the requisite consideration at the hands of the Reference Court. We are therefore inclined to set aside the judgments and decrees under appeal and remand the LAR cases to the Reference Court for passing a fresh award after making a re-appraisal of the evidence on record. In the revised judgment to be passed by the Reference Court, the learned Sub Judge will specifically address the question whether on account of the situation that the appellant's un- acquired properties were enjoying direct frontage of Ottappunna-Thvanakkadavu road and the further situation that the properties under acquisition were lying contiguously with the un-acquired properties, the appellant is not entitled to have his property included in category-1 itself. 3. The result of the above discussion is therefore, as follows:- The judgments and decrees under appeal are set aside. LAR.118/02, LAR,72/02 LAR.111/02 are remanded to the Sub L. A. A. No.501/08 & con. cases -4- Court, Cherthala for fresh decision. The learned Sub Judge will re-appreciate the entire evidence on record and pass revised award in all the three cases in the light of what is stated herein above. The parties will enter appearance before the Reference Court on 20th December, 2011. Refund court fee paid on the appeal memo to the counsel for the appellant. Sd/- PIUS C. KURIAKOSE JUDGE Sd/- K. HARILAL JUDGE kns/- //True Copy// P. A. TO JUDGE