1 IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY, AURANGABAD BENCH, AURANGABAD CIVIL APPLICATION NO. 3088 OF 2009 IN FIRST APPEAL ST. NO. 4317 OF 2009 Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation, through Regional Officer at Latur ..Applicant VERSUS Ajay Vinayakrao Hamdapurkar & ors. ..Respondents ... Shri S.S.Dande, advocate for the applicant Shri S.D.Kaldate, AGP for respondent no. 2 ... CORAM : SHRIHARI P.DAVARE, J. DATED : 8th September, 2009 PER COURT : 1 Perused. Heard learned counsel for the parties. 2 The applicant/appellant has preferred the present 2 application for condonation of delay of 21 days in filing the accompanying First Appeal challenging the judgment and order passed by learned 3rd Joint Civil Judge, Senior Division, Latur, in Land Acquisition Reference on 29.8.2008, allowing the Land Reference and thereby enhancing the compensation amount. 3 The applicant submits that after passing the said judgment and order on 29.8.2008, the applicant applied for certified copies thereof on 15.9.2008, which was ready for delivery on 21.11.2008, and was received by the advocate of the applicant on 25.11.2008 and thereafter the same was sent to the applicant accordingly. 4 Thereafter the applicant/appellant forwarded the same to the Head Office at Bombay for its opinion and approval for filing the appeal against the order. On receipt of the said certified copies, the Head Office called for relevant papers and information including the depositions and opinion of the advocate. The applicant/appellant’s office at Latur forwarded the same to the Head Office on 15.12.2008. Accordingly, the applicant’s Head Office decided to file appeal against the judgment and order in the last week of December, 2008. On receipt of the said information and sanctioned amount of court fee, same was 3 communicated/forwarded to the applicant on 11.2.2009. Thereafter the applicant supplied necessary papers and information to the concerned advocate at Aurangabad on 15.2.2009 and thereafter the accompanying First Appeal came to be filed on 24.2.2009 i.e. after delay of 21 days. Hence, the applicant submits that delay of 21 days causing in filing the accompanying First Appeal is minor and same is not willful, deliberate and intentional and also it is not inordinate and hence, prayed that the same be condoned in the interest. Besides, it is submitted by the learned counsel for the applicant that if the present application is allowed, no prejudice would be caused to the respondents, since they would get opportunity to contest the accompanying First Appeal on merits. 5 Mr. S.D.Kaldate, learned A.G.P. opposed the present application vehemently and submitted that the present application bears no substance and is devoid of any merits and as such, the same be rejected. 6 Considering the averments made in the application and also considering the submissions made by the learned counsel for the applicant, it is apparent that by the reasons given in the 4 application, the delay of 21 days caused in filing the accompanying First Appeal has been properly explained by the applicant. Moreover, the said delay is hardly of 21 days and is inordinate as well as it appears that the said delay is not willful, deliberate or intentional and hence, it is required to be condoned in the interest of justice and an opportunity is required to be given to the applicant to prosecute the accompanying First Appeal on its own merits and no prejudice would be caused to the respondents if the present application is allowed, since the respondents would get the opportunity to contest the appeal on its own merits. 7 In the circumstances, the Civil Application is allowed in terms of prayer clause “A” thereof and delay of 21 days caused in filing the accompanying First Appeal stands condoned. The accompanying First Appeal be registered and numbered accordingly. Civil Application stands disposed of. (SHRIHARI P. DAVARE, J.) dbm/ca3088.09