Case: Rajasthan State Indst.Dev.&amp;Inv.Corpn Vs. Subhash Sindhi Coop.Hsg.Society Ltd.&amp;Ors

A. That, a huge area of land admeasuring 607 Bighas and 5 Biswas situate in the revenue estate of villages Durgapura, Jhalan Chod, Sanganer and Dhol-ka-Bad in District Jaipur, including the suit land measuring about 17 Bighas and 9 Biswas in village Durgapura stood notified under Section 4(1) of the Rajasthan Land Acquisition Act, 1953 (hereinafter referred to as theon 18.7.1979, for a public purpose i.e. industrial development, to be executed by the RIICO.B. The respondent society claims to have entered into an agreement to sell with the Khatedars of the suit land on 21.7.1981.C. Declaration under Section 6 of the Act was made on 22.6.1982 for the land admeasuring 591 Bighas and 17 Biswas. After meeting all requisite statutory requirements contained in the Act, possession of the land, including the land in dispute was taken by the Government and was subsequently handed over to RIICO, on 18.10.1982 and 17.11.1983. The Land Acquisition Collector assessed the market value of the land of the Khatedars, and made an award on 14.5.1984. Vide allotment letter dated 10.3.1988, RIICO, made allotment of land admeasuring 105 acres of the land, out of the total acquired land measuring 591 Bighas, to Diamond & Gem Development Corporation Ltd., a Private Ltd. Company (hereinafter referred to as therespondent no. 37, to facilitate the establishment of a Gem Industrial Estate for the manufacturing of Gem stones. This piece of land included within it, the land which was subject matter of an agreement to sell between the respondent society and the original khatedars.D. Acquisition proceedings emanating from the Section 4 Notification dated 18.7.1979, were challenged by the respondent society, as well as by the khatedars jointly in 1989, by filing of Writ Petitions before the High Court of Rajasthan at Jodhpur. A lease deed was executed by appellant-RIICO in favour of the company- respondent No.37 in relation to 105 acres of land on 22.5.1989, including the land in question, which is comprised of Khasra Nos. 226 to 230 is village Durgapura. The aforementioned writ petitions filed by the respondent society and the original khatedars, challenging the land acquisition proceedings stood dismissed on the ground of delay and latches, vide judgment and order dated 21.8.1990 passed by the High Court.E. Aggrieved, the respondent society and one khatedar filed SLPs before this Court challenging the judgment and order dated 21.8.1990. This Court vide order dated 9.9.1992 dismissed the said SLPs, however, while doing so, the Court made an observation that the dismissal of the said SLPs, would not operate as res-judicata if the society approaches the court for release of their land on the ground that lands owned by similar set of individuals or institutions, if any, has been released from acquisition. Such a direction was issued in view of the submissions made by the respondent society, stating that allotment of the said land in favour of the Company had been made fraudulently.F. In view thereof, the society filed a Writ Petition No. 454 of 1993 praying for release of the land admeasuring 17 Bighas and 9 Biswas in Khasra Nos. 226 to 230, in revenue estate of village Durgapura or in the alternative, for the allotment of equivalent suitable land, and also for the cancellation of the allotment of 105 acres of land in favour of the Company. The writ petition was contested by the appellants on the grounds that the respondent society had no locus standi to challenge the acquisition proceedings which had attained finality upto this Court; the transfer of land by the khatedars to the respondent society was void; the respondent society could not claim parity with other persons/societies, whose land stood released for bonafide reasons on good grounds. The High Court heard the said writ petition alongwith another writ petition that had been filed by the Company, which will be dealt with separately.During the pendency of the writ petition, certain other developments took place, that is, the allotment of land made in favour of the Company, was cancelled by the appellant vide order dated 1.10.1996, and possession of the same was taken over from it on 3.10.1996.G. The Division Bench of the High Court allowed the said writ petition vide judgment and order dated 30.7.2002, thereby releasing land admeasuring 17 Bighas and 9 Biswas in favour of the respondent society.Hence, this appeal.

Reasoning:
31. In the instant case, at the initial stage, the writ petition was filed before the High Court at Jodhpur. Admittedly, the land is situated in the heart of the Jaipur city, and all relevant orders including notifications for acquisition were issued at Jaipur. The writ petition ought to have been filed before the Jaipur Bench as per the statutory requirements therein. Learned counsel appearing for the parties could not furnish any explanation, as under what circumstances the first writ petition had been filed by the society alongwith tenure- holders at Jodhpur. Therefore, we are not only doubtful regarding the sanctity of the order passed by the High Court rather, it creates doubt about the bonafides of the parties and further, as to whether such a move could have been made in good faith.This Court has on various occasions dealt with the similar situation and explained as where the writ petition is maintainable. (See: Sri Nasiruddin v. State Transport Appellate Tribunal, AIR 1976 SC 331 ; U.P. Rashtriya Chini Mill Adhikari Parishad, Lucknow, v. State of U.P. & Ors., AIR 1995 SC 2148 ; Rajasthan High Court Advocates Association v. Union of India & Ors., AIR 2001 SC 416 ; and Dr. Manju Verma v. State of U.P. & Ors., (2005) 1 SCC 73 ).32. In the instant case, the government itself labeled the sale deeds, executed after issuance of Section 4 Notification as Void, we fail to understand as for what reasons the State authorities could think to regularise such orders. The right to administer, cannot obviously include the right to maladminister. Thus, we find no words to express anguish as what kind of governance it had been. (Vide: In Re: The Kerala Education Bill, 1957, AIR 1958 SC 956 ; All Bihar Christian Schools Association & Anr. v. State of Bihar & Ors., AIR 1988 SC 305 ; Sindhi Education Society & Anr. v. The Chief Secretary, Govt. of NCT of Delhi & Ors., (2010) 8 SCC 49 ; and State of Gujarat & Anr. v.Mr. Justice R.A. Mehra (Retd.) & Ors., JT 2013 (1) SC 276 ).33. In view of the above discussion, we reach the following inescapableThe society members had entered into an agreement to sell even though, a Notification under Section 4 to carry out acquisition had been issued by the Govt., fully knowing the legal consequences that may arise.(ii) The agreement to sell, made by the society (an unregistered document), did not create any title in favour of the society.iii) The acquisition proceedings were challenged after a decade of the issuance of Notification under Section 4, and 5 years after the date of award, by the society alongwith original khatedars. The petitions in which the aforesaid acquisition proceedings were challenged were dismissed by the High Court on the ground of delay and latches.iv) When the land in dispute is situated in Jaipur city, the society, for reasons best known, had filed the writ petition challenging the acquisition proceedings at Jodhpur and not at Jaipur bench of the High Court. No explanation could be furnished by the learned counsel for the respondent society, as regards the circumstances under which the petition was filed at Jodhpur, and whether the same was maintainable.v) The first writ petition cannot be held to have been filed in good faith and the bonafides of the parties, becomes doubtful.vi) Challenge to the acquisition proceedings attained finality so far as the khatedars are concerned, upto this court.vii) The respondent society never made any application for release of the land on any ground whatsoever, before the Competent Authority i.e. Secretary to the Department of Industries, instead, it applied for regularization before the JDA and before the revenue authorities for conversion of user of the land.viii) After the order of this court dated 9.9.1992, a telegram was sent by the society to the Chief Secretary stating that great injustice had been done to them, as their land was not released, raising the issue of discrimination qua other societies, but no factual foundation was laid therein, pointing out the discrimination meted out.ix) The High Court entertained the writ petition, without comparing the actual facts of the respondent society qua other societies.x) The High Court did not consider a single objection raised by the appellant RIICO before it. The finding of fact recorded to the effect that compensation could not be paid to the khatedars for want of money, is based on no evidence even though a reference was made to an affidavit filed by the State Authorities. Such findings are absolutely perverse.xi) There is no denial in specific terms as to whether the tenure holders had received compensation for the land in dispute, even though in the earlier proceedings, some khatedars were parties.xii) The schemes floated by the State Government (knowing well that acquiring land after the issuance of Section 4 Notification would be void), indicates a sorry state of affairs. Such orders have been passed without realizing that administration does not include mal-administration.xiii) The circulars issued by the State Government, being inconsistent with the policy and the law regarding acquisition, cannot be taken note of. Issuance of such circulars amounts to committing fraud upon statutes, and further, tantamounts to colourable exercise of power. The State in exercise of eminent domain acquires the land. Thus, before completing the acquisition proceedings, it should not release the land in favour of some other person who could not have acquired title over it at any point of time.xiv) The land had been acquired for industrial development and thus, cannot be permitted to be used for residential purposes. Therefore, the demand of the respondent-society cannot be held to be