1 IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY CIVIL APPELLATE JURISDICTION CIVIL APPELLATE JURISDICTION CIVIL APPELLATE JURISDICTION WRIT PETITION NO. 9194 OF 2007 WRIT PETITION NO. 9194 OF 2007 WRIT PETITION NO. 9194 OF 2007 Indirabai Narayan Biwalkar & Ors. .. Petitioners. vs. The State of Maharashtra & Ors. .. Respondents. WRIT PETITION NO. 9195 OF 2007 WRIT PETITION NO. 9195 OF 2007 WRIT PETITION NO. 9195 OF 2007 Rajendra S. Nunoth & Ors. .. Petitioners. vs. The State of Maharashtra & Ors. .. Respondents. WRIT PETITION NO. 9197 OF 2007 WRIT PETITION NO. 9197 OF 2007 WRIT PETITION NO. 9197 OF 2007 Kamliben Anant Vartekar & Ors. .. Petitioners. vs. The State of Maharashtra & Ors. .. Respondents. WRIT PETITION NO. 9218 OF 2007 WRIT PETITION NO. 9218 OF 2007 WRIT PETITION NO. 9218 OF 2007 2 Suresh Yashwant Godambe & Ors. .. Petitioners. vs. The State of Maharashtra & Ors. .. Respondents. WRIT PETITION NO. 9210 OF 2007 WRIT PETITION NO. 9210 OF 2007 WRIT PETITION NO. 9210 OF 2007 Indirabai N. Biwalkar. & Ors. .. Petitioners. vs. The State of Maharashtra & Ors. .. Respondents. Mr. Ameet Palkar i/by D.R. More for Petitioners. Mr. R.P. Behare, Addl. Gvt. Pleader for respondent nos.1 to 4. CORAM: J.N. PATEL, & CORAM: J.N. PATEL, & CORAM: J.N. PATEL, & SMT. NISHITA MHATRE, J. SMT. NISHITA MHATRE, J. SMT. NISHITA MHATRE, J. DATE: 23rd JANUARY, 2008. DATE: 23rd JANUARY, 2008. DATE: 23rd JANUARY, 2008. P.C. . All these petitions can be disposed of at the stage of admission itself by a common order. The grievance made by the petitioners, whose lands have been acquired under the Land Acquisition Act, 1894, is that their applications are pending before the 3 Collector / Special Land Acquisition Officer filed under Section 28-A of the Land Acquisition Act and that they are not being processed and decided. 2. The learned counsel appearing for the petitioners is not in a position to state whether appeal has been preferred against the award of the Reference Court. That is for the respondents to examine. This Court in group of petitions, wherein lead petition was Writ Petition No. 599 of 2006 filed by the petitioners Smt. Indirabai Narayan Biwalkar & Ors., has already directed the respondents by order dated 7.2.2006 to take a decision in the matter and decide the applications under Section 28-A of the Land Acquisition Act as early as possible and preferably within three months. Even the office of this Court was directed to communicate the copy of the order to the Chief Secretary, Government of Maharashtra, Manatralaya, Mumbai for information. 3. We are at pains to record that the learned Addl. Govt. Pleader informs us that inspite of the order being communicated to the concerned official, there is no response in the matter and in spite of the concerned official being informed to contact him and give instructions, he has not received any response from the official concerned. We are informed that the proper authority in the case to take action against the Collector / Special Land Acquisition Officer is the 4 Revenue Department of the State of Maharashtra. We expect the learned Additional Govt. Pleader to convey this order to the Principal Secretary, Revenue and Forest Department, Government of Maharashtra, Mantralaya, Mumbai for taking necessary steps. We, therefore, dispose of all these petitions with the direction to the respondents to dispose of the applications filed by the petitioners under Section 28-A of the Land Acquisition Act, which are pending before them, in accordance with law within three months from the date of communication of this order. The learned counsel for the petitioners to communicate this order to the respondents’ official before whom the applications are pending. The Respondent State of Maharashtra would pay Rs. 10,000/- as costs to the petitioners in each of the petitions. The costs may be thereafter recovered from the concerned officials who have failed to deal with the applications pending before them under Section 28-A of the Land Acquisition Act, 1894 expeditiously in accordance with law. Costs to be deposited in this Court within a period of four weeks. (J.N. Patel, J.) (J.N. Patel, J.) (J.N. Patel, J.) (Smt. Nishita Mhatre, J.) (Smt. Nishita Mhatre, J.) (Smt. Nishita Mhatre, J.)