IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA CWJC No.8675 of 2009 1. HARIBALLABH NARAYAN SINGH, S/o- Late Mangal Singh, R/o- Village Singahi; P.S.- Piprahi, District- Sheohar. 2. Devendra Kumar Singh, S/o- Hariballabh Narayan Singh, R/o- Village- Singahi, P.S.- Piprahi; District- Sheohar :---- Petitioners. Versus 1. THE STATE OF BIHAR through its Commissioner and Secretary, Department of Revenue and Land Reforms, Govt. of Bihar, Patna. 2. The Special Land Acquisition Officer, Gandak Yojna Muzaffarpur, District- Muzaffarpur. 3. The District Magistrate-cum-Collector, District- Sheohar :--- Respondents. ----------- 4. 09.11.2009. Counsel for the State has filed counter affidavit which is taken on record. 2. Heard learned counsel for the petitioners and the State. 3. Lands of the petitioners as detailed in paragraph 4 was acquired for raising the Bagmati embankment. It appears the petitioners were not satisfied with the compensation amount and they requested the Collector of the District under petition dated 18.12.1993 and 20.12.1993, Annexures- 5 and 5/A appended with the supplementary affidavit, to revise the compensation amount or to refer the matter to the Land Acquisition Judge in terms of the provisions contained in Section 18 of the Land Acquisition Act. The two petitions filed by the petitioners were not considered by the Collector, Sitamarhi, meanwhile, the petitioners approached the Land Acquisition Judge with a request to enhance their compensation amount in lieu of the acquisition of the aforesaid lands but the request of the petitioners was rejected under judgment dated 31.3.2009 on the ground that the petitioners have approached the Land Acquisition Judge directly and not through the Collector. Once the request of the - 2 - petitioners to enhance the compensation has been rejected under judgment dated 31.3.2009 for failure to approach through the Collector petitioners enquired from the office obtaining information about the aforesaid two petition and they have been informed with reference to Application for Information dated 5.9.2009 that the aforesaid two petitions remained pending in the office of the learned Collector, Sitamarhi. 4. Having heard the counsel for the petitioners and the State as also perused the counter affidavit and the information received on the Application for Information, I direct the Collector, Sitamarhi to consider the two petitions contained in Annexures- 5 and 5/A to the supplementary affidavit and refer the same to the Land Acquisition Judge, Sitamarhi for disposal as early as possible in any case within one month of the receipt of the copy of the order of this Court. 5. This writ application is, accordingly, disposed of. P.K.P. (V.N.Sinha, J.)