HON’BLE SRI JUSTICE V. ESWARAIAH AND HON’BLE SRI JUSTICE K.S. APPA RAO A.S.No. 1956 of 1998 ORDER: (Per Hon’ble Sri Justice K.S. Appa Rao) Aggrieved by the order dated 13-07-1994 passed in O.P.No.114 of 1986 on the file of the I Additional Subordinate Judge, Visakhapatnam, the present appeal is filed. The appellant herein is the claimant in O.P.No.114 of 1986. 2. The brief facts of the case are that the land of the claimant to an extent of 459.8 square yards in S.No.29/2A of Allipuram Extension ward was acquired by the government through the notification under Section 4(1) of the Land Acquisition Act, 1894 (for short ‘the Act’). After due enquiry, the Land Acquisition Officer passed Award No.15 of 1985 dated 10-12-1985 fixing the compensation for the acquired lands at Rs.40/- per square yard. The claimant, being not satisfied with the quantum of compensation 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.. 3. During the course of enquiry before the Reference Court, on behalf of the claimant, PWs.1 and 2 were examined and Exs.A-1 to A-14 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. After considering the entire material on record, the Reference Court, through the impugned order, dated 13-07-1994, enhanced the compensation awarded by the Land Acquisition Officer from Rs.40/- per square yard to Rs.60/- per square yard. Aggrieved by the same, the claimant filed the present appeal seeking further enhancement of the compensation. 5. The learned counsel for the appellant-claimant contended that the Reference court ought to have held that Section 4(1) notification had been issued for the entire extent of Ac.0-30 cents of land comprised in S.No.29/2A, and hence, the compensation ought to have been awarded for the entire extent instead of Ac.0-09 cents. It is further contended that the finding of the Reference Court that the claimant cannot question the payment of compensation only to Ac.0-09 cents, is illegal and not correct. 6. On the other hand, the learned Government Pleader for Appeals, while supporting the impugned order, sought for dismissal of the appeal. 7. Now the point for consideration is whether the amount of compensation awarded by the Reference Court is just and reasonable? POINT: 8. As per the impugned order, PW-1, who is the claimant, stated that there is no record with him to show that Ac.0-30 cents of land was delivered to the Government under the present acquisition proceedings and that he has not placed any material before the Court to show that an extent of Ac.0-30 cents of land was in his possession by the date of acquisition by the Government and that the entire Ac.0-30 cents of land was taken by the Government at any point of time. 9. It is the contention of the claimant that once the Government took possession of the entire Ac.0-30 cents of land from him, it is not entitled to denotify the same and therefore, the Government is liable to pay the compensation for the entire Ac.0-30 cents of land. 10. Ex.A-12 is the original gift deed, under which 33,560 square feet of land compromised in S.No.29 was admittedly gifted away by the claimant to the Municipal Corporation after laying roads. The claimant failed to place any evidence before the Reference Court to show that the land gifted away under Ex.A-12 is not compromised in S.No.29/2A. While scrutinising the said documentary evidence, the trial Court found that the claimant failed to establish that he was having title over the extent of land comprising 29/2A by the date of acquisition and that he never parted with the title over the same prior to the date of acquisition to anybody. 11. The learned counsel appearing for the appellant-claimant further contended that the Reference Court erred in observing that the claimant has to file a suit before the Civil Court to get the finding about the ownership of Ac.0-30 cents of land. 12. For better appreciation, Section 18 of the Act is quoted as under: 18. Reference to Court.—(1) Any person interested who has not accepted the award may, by written application to the Collector, require that the matter be referred by the Collector for the determination of the Court, whether his objection be to the measurement of the land, the amount of the compensation, the persons to whom it is payable, or the apportionment of the compensation among the persons interested. (2) The application shall state the grounds on which objection to the award is taken: Provided that every such application shall be made:-- (a) if the person making it was present or represented before the Collector at the time when he made his award, within six weeks from the date of the Collector’s award; (b) in other cases, within six weeks of the receipt of the notice from the Collector under Section 12, sub-section (2), or within six months from the date of the Collector’s award, whichever period shall first expire. 13. The sum and substance of the above provision is that the Reference Court should go into the merits of the title and the measurements of the property in acquisition, and adjudicate the rights of the parties in the property. Therefore, the finding of the Reference Court that the appellant-claimant has to file a suit before the Civil Court in the subject matter, in our view, is erroneous and not sustainable, and it is accordingly set aside. 14. The crux of the issue is whether the appellant has established his claim of compensation for the total extent of Ac.0-30 cents comprising S.No.29/2A. The evidence on record did not show that the claimant has absolute rights in Ac.0-30 cents of land comprising S.No.29/2A. Moreover, no iota of evidence is placed on that score. The Reference Court well discussed the evidence on record and held that the claimant failed to prove that he is entitled to the compensation for the total extent of Ac.0-30 cents. 15. Accordingly, subject to the above observations, the Appeal is disposed of. No order as to costs. _______________ V. ESWARAIAH, J _______________ K.S. APPA RAO, J Date: 29-11-2011 YCR