RFA No. 2130 of 2009 (O&M) 1 IN THE HIGH COURT OF PUNJAB AND HARYANA AT CHANDIGARH C.M. No. 5966-CI of 2009 and RFA No. 2130 of 2009 (O&M) Date of Decision: 27.5.2009 State of Haryana ....Appellant Versus Ashok Kumar and others ...Respondents CORAM : Hon'ble Mr. Justice Rajesh Bindal Present:- Ms. Palika Monga, AAG Haryana. RAJESH BINDAL J **** The prayer in the application is for condonation of delay of 1420 days in filing the appeal. The challenge in the appeal is sought to be made to the award of learned Additional District Judge, Faridabad dated 4.1.2005 in an application filed by land owners under Section 28-A (3) of the Land Acquisition Act, 1894. In the award while granting the amount of compensation in terms of the compensation awarded to other land owners the learned Court below directed that the land owners shall also be entitled to benefits of amended provisions of Act under Section 23(1-A) thereof. The District Attorney, Faridabad opined that the case was not fit for filing appeal. The opinion so expressed was approved by the Legal Remembrancer and Secretary to Government Haryana vide memo No. 7495 dated 15.2.2005. The land owners filed execution of the award passed in their favour claiming the amount of compensation as has been determined by the Court. Thereafter the matter was examined again and it was found that the land in the present case having been acquired much prior to the amendment in the Act as even the award was announced by the Collector on 21.9.1978 i.e. prior to 30.4.1982 the date from which the amended provisions were made applicable and the respondent-landowners were not entitled to benefits of amended provisions of Section 23 (1-A) of the Act. The matter was referred by the Director, Urban Estate Department, Haryana, on 10.7.2007 to Legal Remembrancer and Secretary to Government of Haryana for issuing necessary instructions to Advocate General, Haryana for filing appeal against the award of learned Court below dated 4.1.2005. The Legal Remembrancer issued necessary instructions to Advocate General, Haryana on 12.9.2007 for filing appeal. On 19.9.2007, office of the Advocate General, Haryana informed the concerned office for sending necessary RFA No. 2130 of 2009 (O&M) 2 documents for filing appeal which was admittedly received by it on 25.9.2007. The explanation which is sought to be made for explaining the delay which occurred in filing of appeal thereafter is astonishing. It is stated that after receipt of letter from Advocate General the documents were given to Private Typing Company on 27.9.2007 as per decision of the authority considering the shortage of staff and workload in the office where all urgent typing work was given to the private company. The documents were typed in the month of January 2008. The paper book in the present case is containing only 21 pages. There is no explanation whatsoever for the period after January 2008 till the present appeal was filed on 25.2.2009. The aforesaid facts clearly shows a total casual attitude of the appellant for dealing with the matter which required immediate attention for taking necessary legal remedies even where the appeal was admittedly delayed. It was on a re-consideration of the matter that the Legal Remembrancer opined that the case was fit for filing appeal, still it took about four months to get 21 pages typed and more than one year thereafter to file the present appeal. This delay cannot possibly be justified by any reason whatsoever. Accordingly I do not find any reason to condone the delay. The application for condonation of delay is dismissed. Consequently, the appeal is also dismissed. (RAJESH BINDAL) 27.5.2009 JUDGE Reema