IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE, ANDHRA PRADESH AT HYDERABAD WEDNESDAY, THE TWENTIETH DAY OF AUGUST TWO THOUSAND AND EIGHT PRESENT THE HON'BLE SRI ANIL R. DAVE, THE CHIEF JUSTICE and THE HON'BLE MR JUSTICE VILAS V. AFZULPURKAR WRIT APPEAL NO : 832 of 2008 (Writ Appeal under Clause 15 of the Letters Patent against the Order dated 01/11/2007 in WP NO : 2639 OF 2007 on the file of the High Court.) Between: 1 Tummala Padmanaidu, s/o Vemula Naidu, r/o Iskapalli Village, Gopavaram Mandal, Kadapa District. 2 Kotapati Murthygari Rosaiah (died) His L.R., & Wife Ramasubbamma, r/o Iskapalli Village, Gopavaram Mandal, Kadapa District. 3 Thummala Munaiah Naidu, s/o Narasaiah Naidu, r/o Iskapalli Village, Gopavaram Mandal, Kadapa District. 4 Kotapati Pedda Venkataiah, s/o Rosaiah, r/o Iskapalli Village, Gopavaram Mandal, Kadapa District. 5 Gattamaneni Subbaramaiah, s/o Lakshmaiah, r/o Iskapalli Village, Gopavaram Mandal, Kadapa District. 6 Vamasami Pedda Subbaiah, s/o Subbaiah, r/o Iskapalli Village, Gopavaram Mandal, Kadapa District. 7 Kotapati Ramanappageri Pitchaiah (died) His L.R., & Wife Narasamma, r/o Iskapalli Village, Gopavaram Mandal, Kadapa District. 8 Thummala MunirathnamNaidu, s/o Venkatappa Naidu, r/o Iskapalli Village, Gopavaram Mandal, Kadapa District. 9 Pathan Chinna Khadar Saheb, s/o Bude Saheb, r/o Iskapalli Village, Gopavaram Mandal, Kadapa District. 10 Pathan Mahaboob Basha, s/o Dada Saheb, r/o Iskapalli Village, Gopavaram Mandal, Kadapa District. 11 Pathan Basha, s/o Peddakhadar, r/o Iskapalli Village, Gopavaram Mandal, Kadapa District. 12 Pathan Ramthu Sahab, s/o Khadar Sahab, r/o Iskapalli Village, Gopavaram Mandal, Kadapa District. 13 Thummala Venkata Narasaiah Naidu, s/o Narasapa Naidu, r/o Iskapalli Village, Gopavaram Mandal, Kadapa District. 14 Kotapati Thirupalu (died) His L.R., and son, Kotapati Chinna Venkataiah, r/o Iskapalli Village, Gopavaram Mandal, Kadapa District. ..... APPELLANT(S) AND 1 Government of Andhra Pradesh, represented by its Principal Secretary, Department of Irrigation & Command Area Development, Secretariat, Hyderabad. 2 The Special Collector, G.N.N.S.Project, Kadapa. 3 The Special Deputy Collector, Somaseela Project, Unit-IV Project at Rajampet, Kadapa District. .....RESPONDENT(S) Counsel for the Appellant:MR.M.SUBRAHMANYAM Counsel for the Respondent No.: GP FOR IRRIGATION & COMM AREA DEV. The Court made the following : JUDGMENT: (Per Anil R. Dave, CJ) Admit. At the request of the learned Advocates, the appeal is finally heard today. The short question involved in this appeal is with regard to payment of interest on the amount of compensation, which the appellants are entitled to. The facts, which are necessary for the purpose of deciding this appeal are that the land belonging to the appellants-original petitioners had been acquired under notification issued on 15-12-1977 under Section 4(1) of the Land Acquisition Act, 1894 (for short ‘the Act’). Compensation was paid to the appellants. The appellants did not file any reference under Section 18 of the Act. But upon knowing that some of the awardees had filed reference application under Section 18 of the Act and when higher amounts had been awarded by the Court, they also filed an application under Section 28-A of the Act on 7-11-1996. The said application was filed within the period of limitation. The said application was rejected on 2-9-2003 for reasons with which we are not concerned at this stage. Being aggrieved by the order of rejection, the appellants filed petition, namely, W.P.No. 2639 of 2007 on 13-2-2007 i.e., almost after four years. The aforestated petition was partly allowed. The learned Single Judge has given certain directions with regard to payment of interest. Being aggrieved by some of the directions, this appeal has been filed. The aforestated facts are not in dispute at all. It is also not in dispute that the appellants did not file the writ petition immediately after the application under Section 28-A of the Act was rejected on 2-9-2003. The question is whether the appellants should be paid interest for the period during which they remain indolent and did not approach this Court i.e., during the period from 2-9-2003 to 13-2-2007. The petition has been ultimately allowed, but, in our opinion, interest for the aforestated period need not be paid, because there was delay on the part of the appellants in approaching this Court. The learned Single Judge has directed that interest would become payable only if the amount remains unpaid after October, 2007. In our opinion, the said direction is not warranted and therefore, we quash and set aside the said direction. Thus the order passed by the learned Single Judge is modified to the effect that the direction with regard to paying the interest if the amount remains unpaid after October, 2007 is quashed and it is further directed that interest for the period commencing from 2-9-2003 to 13-2-2007 shall not be paid for the reason that the appellants-petitioners had approached this Court after substantial time without any justifiable reason. Subject to the above direction, the appeal stands disposed of as allowed with no order as to costs. _____________________ ANIL R. DAVE, CJ 20th August, 2008. ______________________________ VILAS V. AFZULPURKAR, J GRR