HON’BLE SRI JUSTICE A. GOPAL REDDY AND HON’BLE SRI JUSTICE RAJA ELANGO A.S.No.334 of 2002 Dated: 03-06-2010 Between: The Land Acquisition Officer-cum- Mandal Revenue Officer, Ulavapadu, Ulavapadu Mandal. Appellant AND L.Subbarami Reddy (died) per L.Rs. and Others. Respondents. This Court made the following: HON’BLE SRI JUSTICE A. GOPAL REDDY AND HON’BLE SRI JUSTICE RAJA ELANGO A.S.No.334 of 2002 JUDGMENT: (Per Hon’ble Sri Justice A.Gopal Reddy) This appeal by the Land Acquisition Officer under Section 54 of the Land Acquisition Act, 1894 (for short ‘the Act’) is directed against the orders of the Senior Civil Judge, Kandukur, dated 21.06.2001 made in O.P.No.55 of 1989 enhancing the compensation for the acquired land from Rs.13,000/- to Rs.30,000/- per acre. An extent of Ac.7.50 cents of land in Sy.No.1398/1 Part belonged to the claimants-respondents herein situated in Karedu Village of Ulavapadu Mandal was acquired by Government for the purpose of providing house-sites to the weaker sections of the society by issuing draft notification under Section 4(1) of the Act on 12.1.1987. The Land Acquisition Officer after conducting enquiry, passed an award fixing the market value of the acquired land at Rs.13,000/- per acre. The claimants having not satisfied with the fixation of the market value, sought for reference to the Civil Court for due determination of the market value. On reference being made, the claimants appeared and filed claim statement before the reference Court claiming compensation at Rs.30,000/- per acre. To prove the market value, on behalf of the claimants, P.Ws.1 to 5 were examined and Exs.A.1 and X.1 sale deeds were marked. On behalf of the referring Officer, the Mandal Revenue Officer was examined as R.W.1 and Exs.B.1 to B.4 were marked. On consideration of the evidence available on record, the reference Court fixed the market value of the acquired land at Rs.30,000/- per acre. Aggrieved by the same, the present appeal is filed by the Land Acquisition Officer. The evidence adduced by the claimants clearly discloses that under Ex.A.1 sale deed, which is also mentioned as item No.5 in the award, an extent of one acre of land was sold on 11.2.1985 for a consideration of Rs.26,000/- with existing crop. Under Ex.X.1 sale deed, dated 5.9.1985, the land which is at a distance of two furlongs from the acquired land was sold at Rs.20,000/- per acre. Item Nos.2,4 and 5 of the sale statistics obtained by the Land Acquisition Officer relate to Sy.No.1398 and one acre of land in each sale deed was sold at Rs.25,000/-, Rs.10,000/- and Rs.26,000/- respectively. But, the Land Acquisition Officer discarded the sale item Nos.2 and 5, and fixed the market value of the acquired land at Rs.10,000/- per acre by relying upon the sale transaction under item No.4, dated 26.11.1984. When number of sale deeds of the same survey number are available and when the Land Acquisition Officer failed to substantiate that the sale transactions were brought into existence to claim higher compensation, the claimants are entitled to the higher value that reflected among those sale transactions as held by the Apex Court in Sri Rani M. Vijayalakshmamma Rao Bahadur, Ranee of Vuyyur v. The Collector of Madras (Andhra Weekly Reporter (Supreme Court) 45). Further, absolutely, no reasons were assigned by the Land Acquisition Officer nor any contra evidence was adduced to show that the sale transactions covered by Exs.A.1 and X.1 were brought into existence to claim higher compensation, and therefore, the reference Court fixed the market value at Rs.30,000/- per acre after giving due escalation of 10% per annum to the sale consideration reflected in Ex.A.1. In that view of the matter, the fixation of the market value by the reference Court at Rs.30,000/- per acre does not call for any interference by this Court. The appeal fails and the same is accordingly dismissed. No order as to costs. ________________ A. GOPAL REDDY, J. __________________ JUNE 03, 2010 RAJA ELANGO, J. Tsr.