Case: THE EXECUTIVE ENGINEER, M.I.W Vs. VITTHAL DAMODAR PATIL

It is submitted that the witness possessed the necessary qualification and was competent to prepare the subject valuation report. The procedure adopted by him has been explained in his evidence which commended to the High Court and that view being a possible view, needs no interference. It is submitted that this appeal must fail both on the ground of delay as also on merits. 10. We have heard Mr. Sandeep S. Deshmukh, learned counsel for the appellant and Mr. P.S. Patwalia, learned senior counsel for the respondents-claimants. 11. At the outset, we reject the objection regarding the appeal being barred by limitation. In our opinion, in the peculiar facts of the present case, the explanation offered by the appellant for condoning the delay in filing of this appeal is a just and plausible explanation. As regards the merits of the controversy, we agree with the appellant that neither the Reference Court nor the High Court has analysed the evidence of Mr. Ravindra Ghanshyam Chaudhari, witness examined by the claimants in its proper perspective and more particularly in the context of the issues raised by the appellant about his competency, capability and including the procedure followed by him in preparing the valuation report and without providing any proof to justify the opinion formulated by him as regards the valuation of the acquired property. All these points, though raised by the appellant, as is manifest from the tenor of his cross-examination by the appellant, have not received proper attention of the High Court which was dealing with the first appeal, both on facts and on law. 12. The High Court, in our opinion, misapplied the decision in the case of Chindha Fakira Patil (supra). We say so because in that case, the principal argument was regarding discarding of Exhibit-28, concerning the relied-upon sale instance for the purpose of determining the market value. That can be discerned from paragraph 7 of the reported judgment, which reads as follows:?7. Shri Pallav Shishodia, learned Senior Counsel appearing for the appellants assailed the impugned judgment mainly on the ground that the reasons assigned by the High Court for discarding Exhibit 28 are not only irrelevant but are based on pure conjectures. He emphasised that while determining the amount of compensation, the Reference Court was entitled to take into consideration the sale instance which represented highest value paid for similar land and the High Court committed an error by basing its judgment on the average value of the sale instances referred to in the award passed by the respondent. In support of this argument, Shri Shishodia relied upon the judgments of this Court in M. Vijayalakshmamma Rao Bahadur v. Collector of Madras, State of Punjab v. Hans Raj and Anjani Molu Dessai v. State of Goa.?13. The judgment essentially deals with that contention. Indeed, the reported decision has adverted to the observation made by the Reference Court concerning the testimony of Mr. Ravindra Ghanshyam Chaudhari, who is the same witness. That has been noted in paragraph 11 of the reported judgment. The Court, no doubt, in paragraph 22 of the reported decision, has noted that there was no reason to discard the valuation report of Mr. Ravindra Ghanshyam Chaudhari. However, what is significant to bear in mind is that neither the Reference Court nor this Court in the aforesaid decision was called upon to consider the question about the eligibility and competency of the witness examined by the claimants. That issue has been specifically raised by the appellant in the present case, relying on the purported admission of the witness. Whether this contention raised by the appellant deserves acceptance or otherwise, is a matter which ought to have been examined at least by the High Court on its own merits. In other words, the reported decision is of no avail because every reference proceeding must be decided on the basis of the evidence produced and the issues raised by the parties in the concerned proceeding. Thus, the evidence of the witness examined by the claimants and the analysis thereof by this Court in some other reference case arising from an independent notification issued in earlier point of time concerning another village/Taluka cannot be the basis to mechanically hold that since the valuation report has been prepared by the same witness, it must be accepted as duly proved in all respects in the reference under consideration, moreso in respect of the justness of the valuation of the subject property. 14. As aforesaid, in the present case, the Reference Court discarded the valuation report on the finding that the valuer did not explain or bring on record how he made categories of custard apple. The High Court overturned that finding but failed to examine the nuances of the cross-examination of the witness brought on record by the appellant and the purported admission given by him, including the contention that he had failed to produce any proof to establish that he was ever been approved by the Government at the relevant time as an approved valuer and also to justify the valuation of the subject property. The High Court relied upon the subject valuation report essentially because the same witness had prepared a similar valuation report and submitted it in some other reference proceeding, which came to be accepted by this Court in the case of Chindha Fakira Patil (supra). There is no proper analysis of the oral evidence which has come on record in the present case and moreso the efficacy of lengthy cross- examination of the said witness by the appellant in respect of matters such as his eligibility, competence and including credibility, reliability and admissibility of the evidence given by him regarding the contents of the valuation report. We do not wish to analyse the said evidence and the contentions raised by the appellant in that regard for the first time in the present appeal. That ought to have been done by the High Court which was considering the first appeal, both on facts and on law.

Decision (1 = appeal accepted, 0 = rejected): 1

Explanation:
1[ds]11. At the outset, we reject the objection regarding the appeal being barred by limitation. In our opinion, in the peculiar facts of the present case, the explanation offered by the appellant for condoning the delay in filing of this appeal is a just and plausible explanation. As regards the merits of the controversy, we agree with the appellant that neither the Reference Court nor the High Court has analysed the evidence of Mr. Ravindra Ghanshyam Chaudhari, witness examined by the claimants in its proper perspective and more particularly in the context of the issues raised by the appellant about his competency, capability and including the procedure followed by him in preparing the valuation report and without providing any proof to justify the opinion formulated by him as regards the valuation of the acquired property. All these points, though raised by the appellant, as is manifest from the tenor of his cross-examination by the appellant, have not received proper attention of the High Court which was dealing with the first appeal, both on facts and on law.The High Court, in our opinion, misapplied the decision in the case of Chindha Fakira Patil (supra). We say so because in that case, the principal argument was regarding discarding of Exhibit-28, concerning the relied-upon sale instance for the purpose of determining the market value.The judgment essentially deals with that contention. Indeed, the reported decision has adverted to the observation made by the Reference Court concerning the testimony of Mr. Ravindra Ghanshyam Chaudhari, who is the same witness. That has been noted in paragraph 11 of the reported judgment. The Court, no doubt, in paragraph 22 of the reported decision, has noted that there was no reason to discard the valuation report of Mr. Ravindra Ghanshyam Chaudhari. However, what is significant to bear in mind is that neither the Reference Court nor this Court in the aforesaid decision was called upon to consider the question about the eligibility and competency of the witness examined by the claimants. That issue has been specifically raised by the appellant in the present case, relying on the purported admission of the witness. Whether this contention raised by the appellant deserves acceptance or otherwise, is a matter which ought to have been examined at least by the High Court on its own merits. In other words, the reported decision is of no avail because every reference proceeding must be decided on the basis of the evidence produced and the issues raised by the parties in the concerned proceeding. Thus, the evidence of the witness examined by the claimants and the analysis thereof by this Court in some other reference case arising from an independent notification issued in earlier point of time concerning another village/Taluka cannot be the basis to mechanically hold that since the valuation report has been prepared by the same witness, it must be accepted as duly proved in all respects in the reference under consideration, moreso in respect of the justness of the valuation of the subject property.As aforesaid, in the present case, the Reference Court discarded the valuation report on the finding that the valuer did not explain or bring on record how he made categories of custard apple. The High Court overturned that finding but failed to examine the nuances of the cross-examination of the witness brought on record by the appellant and the purported admission given by him, including the contention that he had failed to produce any proof to establish that he was ever been approved by the Government at the relevant time as an approved valuer and also to justify the valuation of the subject property. The High Court relied upon the subject valuation report essentially because the same witness had prepared a similar valuation report and submitted it in some other reference proceeding, which came to be accepted by this Court in the case of Chindha Fakira Patil (supra). There is no proper analysis of the oral evidence which has come on record in the present case and moreso the efficacy of lengthy cross- examination of the said witness by the appellant in respect of matters such as his eligibility, competence and including credibility, reliability and admissibility of the evidence given by him regarding the contents of the valuation report. We do not wish to analyse the said evidence and the contentions raised by the appellant in that regard for the first time in the present appeal. That ought to have been done by the High Court which was considering the first appeal, both on facts and on law.