HON’BLE SRI JUSTICE A. GOPAL REDDY AND HON’BLE SRI JUSTICE K.S. APPA RAO A.S.No.3687 of 2000 Date:11-08-2011 Between: Vankineni Ratnakumari and others …….. Appellants And The Land Acquisition Officer & M.R.O., Eluru, W.G. District ……….. Respondents HON’BLE SRI JUSTICE A. GOPAL REDDY AND HON’BLE SRI JUSTICE K.S. APPA RAO A.S.No.3687 of 2000 JUDGMENT: (Per Hon’ble Sri Justice A. Gopal Reddy) This appeal has been filed under Section 54 of the Land Acquisition Act, 1894 (for short ‘the Act’), against the order dated 21- 06-2000 passed in O.P.No.121 of 1988 on the file of the Additional Senior Civil Judge at Eluru. The appellants herein are the claimants in the said O.P. For convenience sake, the parties hereinafter will be referred to as they are arrayed in the O.P. 2. The brief facts of the case are that the dry lands of the claimants to a total extent of Ac.11-53 cents i.e., an extent of Ac.5-08 cents in R.S.No.310/6B belonging to the first claimant; Ac.1-73 cents in R.S.No.310/6B and Ac.3-35 cents in R.S.No.348 belonging to the second claimant and Ac.1-37 cents in R.S.No.348 belonging to the third claimant, situated in Eluru, were acquired by the Government for the purpose of providing house sites to the weaker sections by issuing draft notification under Section 4(1) of the Act. The Land Acquisition Officer, after due enquiry, passed the award dated 31-10-1985 in Award No.4 of 1985-86, fixing the market value of the acquired lands at Rs.24,200/- per acre. The claimants, being not satisfied with the said market value fixed by the Land Acquisition Officer, sought for reference of the matter to the Civil Court and accordingly, the matter was referred to the Reference Court under Section 18 of the Act. On reference being made, the same was received and numbered as O.P.No.121 of 1988 and after issuing notice to the claimants, they filed respective claim statements claiming the market value of Rs.1,25,000/- per acre for the lands acquired. 3. During the course of enquiry before the Reference Court, on behalf of the claimants, PWs.1 to 5 were examined and Ex.A-1 to A- 5 were got marked. On behalf of the Land Acquisition Officer, RW-1 was examined and Exs.B-1 and B-2 were got marked. 4. The Reference Court, while evaluating the evidence on record, discarded Ex.A-1, copy of the award in O.P.No.119 of 1985, and Ex.A-2, copy of the judgment in A.S.No.3172 of 1990, which was filed against the order in O.P.No.119 of 1985, on the ground that the lands therein were acquired on 15-03-1985 i.e., one and half year after the present acquisition and further they are abutting Eluru-Peddapadu main road and therefore, they fetch more value than the value of the present acquired land. However, while taking into consideration the other evidence, the Reference Court enhanced the market value of the acquired lands from Rs.24,200/- to Rs.50,000/- per acre. The claimants, being not satisfied with the quantum of market value enhanced by the Reference Court, preferred the present appeal seeking further enhancement. 5. Sri G. Krishna Murthy, learned counsel appearing for the appellants-claimants contends that the Land Acquisition Officer obtained sale deeds pertaining to the lands sold in the vicinity of the acquired land for the years 1981-82, 1982-83 and under Sale Nos.8/82 and 6/83, the lands were sold at Rs.1,15,144/- and Rs.84,700/- per acre respectively which were referred in the award, but the Land Acquisition Officer did not rely upon them. He further contended that as per Ex.A-1, copy of the order in O.P.No.119 of 1985, an extent of Ac.4-77 cents situated at Eluru was acquired by issuing the notification on 15-03-1985 and the Land Acquisition Officer fixed the market value of those lands at Rs.40,000/- per acre and on reference, the Reference Court enhanced the market value to Rs.30/- per square yard and ultimately, on appeal, in Ex.A-2 this Court, while relying upon an earlier acquisition dated 25-04-1978, took the market value as Rs.30/- per square yard and after adding escalation for the time gap and deducting 1/3rd towards development, fixed the market value at Rs.44/- per square yard. Therefore, as the present acquired lands are also situated in Eluru and have the potentiality to use as house sites, the claimants are entitled to the market value of at least Rs.1,15,144/- per acre as per the highest value sale deed referred to by the Land Acquisition Officer in the Award. 6. Per contra, the learned Government Pleader contended that the Reference Court appreciated the evidence on record in proper perspective and rightly enhanced the market value of the acquired lands from Rs.24,200/- to Rs.50,000/- per acre, and, there are no grounds for further enhancement of the same. 7. In view of the rival contentions, the point arises for consideration is whether the claimants are entitled to the enhancement of the market value for the acquired lands? 8. In Ex.A-2, copy of the order in A.S.No.3172 of 1990 and Cross Objections, this Court placed reliance on the earlier order pertaining to the lands acquired in the vicinity of the present acquired lands through the notification dated 25-04-1978, whereunder the market value of those lands was fixed as Rs.20/- per square yard after deducting 1/3rd of the value, and took the same value and added escalation of Rs.5/- per square yard per year @ 25% per annum and after deducting 1/3rd of the same, fixed the market value at Rs.44/- per square yard. 9. The Supreme Court in LAND ACQUISITION OFFICER v. B. VIJENDER REDDY [1] held that: “In the fixation of rate of compensation under the Land Acquisition Act, there is always some element of guesswork. But that has to be based on some foundation. It must spring from the totality of evidence, the pattern of rate, the pattern of escalation and escalation of price in the years preceding and succeeding Section 4 notification etc. In other words, the guesswork could reasonably be inferable from it. It is always possible to assess the rate within this realm.” 10. Therefore, whether awarding escalation of 25% per annum over the market value fixed for the lands acquired in the year 1978, as done by this Court, is valid or not depends upon the facts and circumstances of each case. 11. In the present case, it is evident from the award that the sale deed of the year 1983 obtained by the Land Acquisition Officer discloses that an extent of 113.70 square yards in R.S.No.281/4 was sold under sale No.6/83 for an amount of Rs.2,700/-, which works out to Rs.1,15,144/- per acre. Similarly an extent of 200 square yards in R.S.No.284/2 was sold in the year 1982 under sale No.8/82 for an amount of Rs.3,500/-, which works out to Rs.84,700/- per acre, and an extent of 132.2 and 250 square yards in R.S.No.282 were sold in the year 1983 for an amount of Rs.2,150/- and Rs.5,000/- respectively, which works out to Rs.96,800/- per acre. 12. From the above, it is clear that the highest value of the land sold under sale No.6/83 within the vicinity of the present acquired lands during the period of issuance of notification was Rs.1,15,144/- per acre. The offer made by the willing purchaser to purchase the land during the relevant period of acquisition will be a guide for fixing the market value of the lands acquired. Further, admittedly the present acquired lands are for the purpose of providing house sites. It is common knowledge that once the people come to know that residential colonies are likely to come due to the acquisition of the land by the Government, normally there will be rise in the value of the lands situated within the vicinity of such acquired lands. Therefore, as the lands referred in Ex.A-1 were acquired posterior to the present notification and they are abutting the main road, the present acquired lands situated at a distance of only 1/2 furlong from the said lands will also fetch the same value as contended by the learned counsel. 13. Therefore, the said sale deed having highest value can be taken into consideration for the purpose of fixing the market value of the present acquired lands. Since the lands under the sale deeds obtained by the Land Acquisition Officer are small extents of 200, 113, 132.2 and 250 square yards and since they are developed plots, 1/3rd from the highest value referred to by the Land Acquisition Officer shall be deducted, while fixing the market value for the present acquired lands as they are agricultural dry lands. Therefore, after deducting 1/3rd from Rs.1,15,144/- per acre, the balance amount comes to Rs.76,762.66/- rounded up to Rs.77,000/- per acre. Accordingly, the market value of the acquired lands is fixed at Rs.77,000/- per acre, and the claimants are entitled to get the same. 14. In the result, the appeal is allowed in part enhancing the market value of the acquired lands from Rs.50,000/- to Rs.77,000/- per acre. The claimants are also entitled to the additional market value of 12% per annum, solatium at 30% and interest on the enhanced market value as per the principles laid down by the Supreme Court in SUNDER v. UNION OF INDIA [2]. No order costs. ________________ A. GOPAL REDDY, J _______________ K.S. APPA RAO, J Date:11-08-2011 YCR [1] (2001) 10 SCC 669 [2] AIR 2001 SC 3516