Case: NARESHBHAI BHAGUBHAI Vs. UNION OF INDIA

2. Since a common issue arises in all 4 Civil Appeals, they are being disposed of by the present common Judgment and Order3. The factual matrix in which the present Civil Appeals have been filed is as under :3.1. On 08.02.2011, a Notification was issued under Section 20A of the Railways Act, 1989 [hereinafter referred to as the said Act] by the Ministry of Railways notifying its intention to acquire the lands specified in 18 Villages, situated in District Surat, Gujarat for the public purpose of construction of the Western Dedicated Freight CorridorThe total land under acquisition was a stretch of 131 kms. The land owned by the Appellants, comprising of approximately 6 kms, was included under the Notification3.2. The Appellants along with other land-owners filed written Objections between 06.04.2011 and 07.04.2011 under Section 20D(1) of the Act before the Competent Authority/ Special Land Acquisition Officer, Surat [hereinafter referred to as the Competent Authority], Surat to challenge the proposed acquisition3.3. The Competent Authority vide letter dated 15.07.2011, informed the land-owners that the acquisition was for a necessary public purpose i.e. the development of the Western Dedicated Freight Corridor. It was stated that compensation would be paid to all affected land- owners in accordance with Sections 20F and 20G of the Railways Act, 1989The land-owners were asked to remain present with necessary proofs at the time of personal hearing, the date of which would be intimated to them3.4. The Competent Authority vide letter dated 19.07.2011, directed the land-owners to appear for a personal hearing on the Objections on 30.07.20113.5. The land-owners appeared before the Competent Authority on 30.07.2011 for personal hearing, and submitted further written Objections on 31.07.20113.6. The Competent Authority submitted its Report to the Central Government under Section 20E(1) of the Act on 03.01.2012On 06.02.2012, the Ministry of Railways issued a Notification under Section 20E(1) of the Railways Act, 1989 stating that 59 Objections had been received in respect of the proposed acquisition, which had been considered and disallowed by the Competent Authority3.7. On 06.02.2013 and 07.02.2013, Awards were passed by the Competent Authority under Section 20F of the Railways Act, 19893.8. On 13.08.2013, Shri Ghanshyamsinh Gambhirsinh Vashi, a land-owner, filed an RTI Application before the Competent Authority seeking a certified copy of the Order passed on the Objections filed by the land- owners3.9. The Competent Authority replied to the said RTI Application on 05.09.2013, and stated that the reply to the Objections raised by the land-owners had already been communicated vide letter dated 15.07.20113.10. The Appellants herein challenged the acquisition proceedings by filing Special Civil Application Nos. 19409 of 2015, 12711 of 2016, 14000 of 2016, and 14001 of 2016 before the Gujarat High CourtThe principal ground of challenge raised by the Appellants was that no Order had been passed on the Objections in accordance with Section 20D(2) of the said ActThe Appellants prayed for quashing and setting aside the Notification issued under Section 20A on 08.02.2011, and the Declaration issued under Section 20E on 06.02.20123.11. During the pendency of the proceedings, the High Court vide Interim Order dated 12.07.2018, directed the Respondents to file an Affidavit giving specific details pertaining to the disposal of the Objections after personal hearing was granted on 30.07.20113.12. The Chief Project Manager, Dedicated Freight Corridor Corporation of India Limited filed Affidavit dated 17.07.2018 on behalf of the Respondents before the High Court, wherein it was stated that :4. I state that the clarification/reply given vide letter dated 15/7/2011 does not indicate the decision/order/predetermination of the Competent Authority. The Competent Authority has merely clarified the purpose of acquisition and provision of Railway Amendment Act 2008 to be considered while awarding compensation. On the contrary, in the said letter dated 15/7/2011, the Competent Authority has clearly informed the objector to remain present with all the relevant documents on a date which was to be intimated later. …8. I state that the Competent Authority, after hearing all the objectors of land under acquisition, has passed two orders dated 28//11/2011 and 3/1/2012 disallowing all the objections raised by the objectors in public interest. Annexed hereto and marked as Annexure VI Colly. Are the copies of the orders dated 28/11/2011 as well as 3/1/20123.13. The High Court vide Final Judgment and Order dated25.07.2018 dismissed the Special Civil Applications filed by the AppellantsThe Court took the view that in matters involving highly technical and scientific fields, courts would be extremely slow in overruling the decision taken by the Government after due deliberation. Unless it was pointed out that relevant considerations were not properly weighed, or that the decision was blatantly mala fide, courts would not attempt to substitute their understanding of such complex subjects for that of the Government. The Appellants failed to produce any material to support their objection that the proposed railway line was not advisableIt was, however, held that Section 20D of the Act confers a valuable right on a person interested in the land under acquisition, to raise objections, and be heard on such objections. The objections raised by a person interested have to be considered and disposed of, after a hearing is given by the competent authority. If the objections received by persons interested have not been disallowed by the competent authority, it would not be open for the Central Government to proceed to issue the Declaration under Section 20E(1) of the ActThe High Court recorded its concern about the manner in which the entire matter was dealt with by the Respondents. The land-owners were informed that their objections were not valid even prior to the personal hearing took placeAfter the personal hearing took place on 30.07.2011, the Competent Authority disposed of the objections on the office file, but never conveyed the decision to the objectors. The Competent Authority had not fulfilled the important stage of disposal of the objections prior to the Declaration being issued under Section 20EIt was further observed that the Competent Authority gave a completely wrong reply to the RTI Application filed by the land-owners. This was an act of utter carelessness which had serious ramificationsThe Competent Authority vide Report dated 03.01.2012, informed the Chief Project Manager, Dedicated Freight Corridor Corporation of India Limited that all the Objections raised by the Appellants were heard at length, and orally answeredThe Special Civil Applications were dismissed by the High Court, and the Competent Authority was directed to pay Costs of Rs. 50,000/- in each of the Special Civil Applications3.14. Aggrieved by the aforesaid Judgment, the Appellant – Land-owners filed the present Civil Appeals3.12. The Chief Project Manager, Dedicated Freight Corridor Corporation of India Limited filed Affidavit dated 17.07.2018 on behalf of the Respondents before the High Court, wherein it was stated that :4. I state that the clarification/reply given vide letter dated 15/7/2011 does not indicate the decision/order/predetermination of the Competent Authority. The Competent Authority has merely clarified the purpose of acquisition and provision of Railway Amendment Act 2008 to be considered while awarding compensation. On the contrary, in the said letter dated 15/7/2011, the Competent Authority has clearly informed the objector to remain present with all the relevant documents on a date which was to be intimated later. …8. I state that the Competent Authority, after hearing all the objectors of land under acquisition, has passed two orders dated 28//11/2011 and 3/1/2012 disallowing all the objections raised by the objectors in public interest. Annexed hereto and marked as Annexure VI Colly. Are the copies of the orders dated 28/11/2011 as well as 3/1/20123.13. The High Court vide Final Judgment and Order dated25.07.2018 dismissed the Special Civil Applications filed by the

Reasoning:
9.2. The statute has mandated a strict procedure to be followed under Section 20D with respect to the submission and hearing of objections. The statute mandates that the order is required to be passed by the Competent Authority after hearing the land-owners. The order cannot precede the hearing of objections. If an order is passed prior to the personal hearing, and enquiry by the Competent Authority, it would be contrary to the statute, invalid, and vitiated by a pre-determined disposition10. In the present case, it is the admitted position that after the personal hearing took place on 30.07.2011, no decision was passed on the objections submitted by the land-owners, either allowing or disallowing their objections; nor was any communication sent to themThis is confirmed by the Affidavit of the Competent Authority dated 18.07.2018 filed before the High Court (pgs. 296 – 301, Volume II),10.1. It is abundantly clear that in the absence of an order being passed as contemplated by Section 20D of the said Act, no further steps could have been taken by the Competent Authority in the acquisition in question10.2. During the hearing of the Special Civil Applications, the High Court called for the office files of the Respondent. On a perusal of the files, the Court chanced upon a hand-written note sent by the Competent Authority to the Chief Project Manager, Dedicated Freight Corridor Corporation of India Limited, which is set out hereinbelow :Finally after due consideration and taking in to view the nationwide infrastructure, long lifetime permanent utility and hence public utility is greater than that of person, all the 59 objection were disallowed by order by the undersigned and their applications for objection were filed at this endThe file noting in the office files of the Competent Authority cannot be considered to be an order on the objections11. Section 20D is a mandatory provision which confers a substantive and valuable right on the land-owners, to object to the proposed acquisition, before they are forcibly divested of their right, title and interest in the land by an expropriatory legislationThe right to file objections under Section 20D of the Railways Act, 1989 is pari materia to Section 5-A of the Land Acquisition Act, 1894 even though the scope of objections may be more limitedThe judgments rendered by this Court on the nature of the right to object under the Land Acquisition Act, 1894 are equally applicable to the Railways ActSub-section (2) of Section 20D mandates the Competent Authority to give the objectors an opportunity of hearing, either in person or through a legal practitionerThe Competent Authority after hearing all objections, and after making such further enquiry, if any, is mandated to pass an order either allowing or disallowing the objections11.1. The limited right given to a land-owner/interested person to file objections, and be granted a personal hearing under Section 20D cannot be reduced to an empty formality, or a mere eye-wash by the Competent Authority. The Competent Authority was duty-bound to consider the objections raised by the Appellants, andpass a reasoned order, which should reflect application of mind to the objections raised by the land-owners. In the present case, there has been a complete dereliction of duty by the Competent Authority in passing a reasoned order on the objections raised by the Appellants11.2. In the present case, it is the undisputed position that no order as contemplated in the eyes of law was passed by the Competent Authority in deciding the objections raised by the AppellantsA statutory authority discharging a quasi-judicial function is required to pass a reasoned order after due application of mind11.3. File Notings and lack of Communication It is settled law that a valid order must be a reasoned order, which is duly communicated to the parties. The file noting contained in an internal office file, or in the report submitted by the Competent Authority to the Central Government, would not constitute a valid order in the eyes of lawIn the present case, there was no order whatsoever passed rejecting the objections, after the personal hearing was concluded on 30.07.2011It is important to note that the Competent Authority did not communicate the contents of the file noting to the Appellants at any stage of the proceedings. The said file noting came to light when the matter was pending before the High Court, and the original files were summonedThe High Court, upon a perusal of the files, came across the file noting recording rejection of the objections only on the ground that the matter pertained to an infrastructure project for public utility11.4. Contradictory Stand taken by the RespondentsThe mandate of the law is that the order on the objections is required to be passed by the Competent Authority after the personal hearing is grantedThe Respondents had filed an Affidavit dated 17.07.2018 before the High Court wherein it was stated that the reply given vide letter dated 15.07.2011 does not indicate the decision/order/pre-determination of the Competent Authority. The Competent Authority had informed the objectors to remain present with all material documents at the time of personal hearing, the date of which would be notified laterAt the time of arguments before this Court, it was sought to be contended by the Additional Solicitor General for the Union of India that the letter dated 15.07.2011 was an order passed under Section 20D(2) of the ActWe find that the stand taken by the Respondents before the High Court and this Court is completely contradictory, and does not commend acceptance11.5. In any event, the order under Section 20D(2) cannot be passed prior to the personal hearing. The mandate of the law is that the order must be passed after the grant of personal hearing, and after any further enquiry is made by the Competent AuthorityThe whole process of granting a personal hearing would be reduced to an empty formality and a farcical exercise, if the order on the objections precedes the grant of personal hearing. This would be clearly contrary to the provisions of Section 20D(2) of the ActIt is well settled that where a statute provides for a thing to be done in a particular manner, then it has to be done in that manner and in no other manner.(Nazir Ahmad v. King Emperor, (1875) LR 1 Ch D 426 followed in Rao Shiv Bahadur Singh v. State of Vindhya Pradesh, AIR 1954 SC 322 ; State of U.P. v. Singhara Singh, AIR 1964 SC 358 ; J&K Housing Board v. Kunwar Sanjay Krishan Kaul, (2011) 10 SCC 714 ; Kunwar Pal Singh v. State of U.P., (2007) 5 SCC 85.  )The provisions of an expropriatory legislation, which compulsorily deprives a person of his right to property without his consent, must be strictly construed. (Jilubhai Nanbhai Khachar v. State of Gujarat, 1995 Supp (1) SCC 596; See also Khub Chand v. State of Rajasthan, AIR 1967 SC 1074 ; CCE v. Orient Fabrics (P) Ltd., (2004) 1 SCC 597.)  The Railways Act, 1989 being an expropriatory legislation, its provisions have to be strictly construed. (Indore Vikas Pradhikaran v. Pure Industrial Coke & Chemicals Ltd., (2007) 8 SCC 705 )11.6. The Competent Authority being a quasi-judicial authority, is obligated by law to act in conformity with mandatory statutory provisions. It is important to note that this is the only opportunity made available to a land-owner, as on submission of the Report to the Central Government, there is no further consideration that takes place. The Central Government acts upon the Report of the Competent Authority, and issues the Declaration under Section 20E of the said ActThis is in contradistinction with the provisions of the Land Acquisition Act, 1894. Section 6 of the Land Acquisition Act requires the satisfaction of Central Government before the Declaration is issued11.7. In the absence of an order passed under Section 20D(2), the subsequent steps taken in the acquisition would consequentially get invalidatedWe find that the challenge before this Court has been made by the Appellants with respect to a stretch of land admeasuring approximately 6 kms, out of the total stretch of 131 kms. The remaining stretch of land comprising of 125 kms has been acquired, and stands vested in the Government. The Respondents have stated on Affidavit that pre-construction activity and earth work has been completed on most parts of the stretch. Furthermore, most of the bridges are either in progress, or have already been completedThe Senior Counsel representing the Appellants in all the present Civil Appeals, after taking instructions from his clients, submitted that since the land was being acquired for a public utility project, his clients would be satisfied if they were granted compensation by awarding the current rate for acquisition of landAdmittedly, no mala fides have been alleged by the Appellants against the Respondents in the acquisition proceedings. The larger public purpose of a railway project would not be served if the Notification under Section 20A is quashed. The public purpose of the acquisition is the construction and operation of a Special Railway Project viz. the Western Dedicated Freight Corridor in District Surat, GujaratIn these extraordinary circumstances, we deem it fit to balance the right of the Appellants on the one hand, and the larger public purpose on the other, by compensating the Appellants for the right they have been deprived of. The interests of justice persuade us to adopt this course of actionThe file noting in the office files of the Competent Authority cannot be considered to be an order on the objections11. Section 20D is a mandatory provision which confers a substantive and valuable right on the land-owners, to object to the proposed acquisition, before they are forcibly divested of their right, title and interest in the land by an expropriatory legislationThe right to file objections under Section 20D of the Railways Act, 1989 is pari materia to Section 5-A of the Land Acquisition Act, 1894 even though the scope of objections may be more limitedThe judgments rendered by this Court on the nature of the right to object under the Land Acquisition Act, 1894 are equally applicable to the Railways ActSub-section (2) of Section 20D mandates the Competent Authority to give the objectors an opportunity of hearing, either in person or through a legal practitionerThe Competent Authority after hearing all objections, and after making such further enquiry, if any, is mandated to pass an order either allowing or disallowing the objections11.1. The limited right given to a land-owner/interested person to file objections, and be granted a personal hearing under Section 20D cannot be reduced to an empty formality, or a mere eye-wash by the Competent Authority. The Competent Authority was duty-bound to consider the objections raised by the Appellants, andpass a reasoned order, which should reflect application of mind to the objections raised by the land-owners. In the present case, there has been a complete dereliction of duty by the Competent Authority in passing a reasoned order on the objections raised by the Appellants11.2. In the present case, it is the undisputed position that no order as contemplated in the eyes of law was passed by the Competent Authority in deciding the objections raised by the AppellantsA statutory authority discharging a quasi-judicial function is required to pass a reasoned order after due application of