Gauhati High CourtBhaskar Kalita vs The State Of Assam And 3 Ors on 6 June, 2023Page No.# 1/6\n\nGAHC010030922013\n\n\n\n\n                              THE GAUHATI HIGH COURT\n   (HIGH COURT OF ASSAM, NAGALAND, MIZORAM AND ARUNACHAL PRADESH)\n\n                                 Case No. : WP(C)/2355/2013\n\n            BHASKAR KALITA\n            S/O LATE PADRAM KALITA, R/O BATADRAVA, P.O. and P.S. BATADRAVA,\n            DIST- NAGAON, PIN-782001, ASSAM\n\n\n\n            VERSUS\n\n            THE STATE OF ASSAM AND 3 ORS\n            REPRESENTED BY THE COMMISSIONER AND SECRETARY TO THE GOVT.\n            OF ASSAM, WATER RESOURCE/IRRIGATION DEPARTMENT, DISPUR, GHY-\n            6, ASSAM\n\n            2:THE CHIEF ENGINEER\n            WATER RESOURCE/IRRIGAON DEPARTMENT\n             CHANDMARI\n             GHY-3\n            ASSAM\n\n            3:THE SUPERINTENDENT ENGINEER\n             NAGAON CIRCLE IRRIGAON\n             DIST- NAGAON\n             PIN-782001\n            ASSAM\n\n            4:THE EXECUTIVE ENGINEER\n             NAGAON DIVISION IRRIGATION DIST- NAGAON\n             PIN-782001\n            ASSA\n\nAdvocate for the Petitioner   : MRK SINGH\n\nAdvocate for the Respondent : DR.B AHMED\n                                                                        Page No.# 2/6\n\n\n\n                                   BEFORE\n            HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE KALYAN RAI SURANA\n\n\n                                    ORDER06.06.2023\n\n\n        Heard Mr. K.K. Mahanta, learned senior counsel assisted by Ms. M.\nBegum, learned counsel for the petitioner. Also heard Mr. M. Chetia, learned\nGovt. Advocate appears on behalf of Mr. N. Upadhyay, learned standing counsel\nfor the Irrigation Department.2.        By filing this writ petition underArticle 226of the Constitution of\nIndia, the petitioner has prayed for a direction upon the respondent authorities:(i) to initiate a land acquisition proceeding in respect of 1K-9L land covered by\nDag No.322/420 of Patta no.284 and 77 of Batadrava Saruhisa Kissam under\nBatadrava mouza of Dhing revenue circle, Nagaon, (ii) to pay compensation and\ninterest, (iii) to appoint the petitioner against the vacant grade-III post in the\nWater Resource Department and (iv) to return and restore the land to the\npetitioner and to pay a sum of Rs.1 crore as damages.3.        The case of the petitioner is that in the year 1974, a part of the herein\nbefore described land was used by the respondent authorities for construction\nof Power Pump Station Santijaan ELIS Pt. No.1, which is stated to be a lift\nIrrigation Project. It is projected that initially a pump station was set up in the\nsaid land and that some additional land of the petitioner was also thereafter\nused in the construction of the drain, godown house and residential house. It is\n                                                                       Page No.# 3/6\n\nsubmitted that the father of the petitioner had approached the concerned\nauthorities for appropriate remedy. The petitioner was born in the year 1979\nand took-up the matter after he had attained majority. It is submitted that vide\nletter under Memo no.CEI.(E) 115/95/339 dated 02.06.2010, the Chief Engineer,\nIrrigation Department, Assam wrote to the Executive Engineer, Nagaon Division\n(Irrigation) to submit a proposal for acquisition of the land of the petitioner\nwhich was followed by submission of the proposal by the Executive Engineer,\nNagaon Division (Irrigation) vide letter no.LA/31/6/Pt.II/3717 dated 19.01.2011.\nIt is submitted that as the petitioner's father and the petitioner had waited\npatiently for a long period of time for compensation and/or for restoration of\nland alongwith damages and hence, this writ petition has been filed underArticle 226of the Constitution of India.4.        This present writ petition which was filed on 05.04.2013, and rule was\nissued by order dated 06.05.2013 and even after 10 years, the respondents\nhave not filed their affidavit-in-opposition. The learned Govt. Advocate and\nlearned departmental counsel had submitted that the petitioner may be\nrelegated to the Civil Court for compensation.5.        Having regard to the projection made by the learned senior counsel\nfor the petitioner that after several representations were submitted to the\nIrrigation Department, the Chief Engineer, Irrigation Assam by the hereinbefore\nreferred letter dated 02.06.2010, had directed the Executive Engineer, Nagaon\nDivision (Irrigation) to submit a proposal which was followed by the letter dated\n19.01.2011.Page No.# 4/66.         Thus, the Court finds that the petitioner had done what was required\nof him to pursue the authorities to acquire the land. It is noted that in the\nproposal dated 19.01.2011 submitted by the Executive Engineer, Nagaon\nDivision (Irrigation), it has been mentioned that as informed by the petitioner,\nthey were offered compensation by means of cash or a job in the department\nfor which no correspondence was available. The question of providing a job at\nthis stage is out of question. Nonetheless in so far as the issue relating to\nacquisition of land is concerned, notwithstanding that there is an inordinate\ndelay in approaching the Court but the Court is of the considered opinion that\nthe State cannot be permitted to take shelter of the law of limitation to deprive\na citizen of its right to have a reasonable land compensation for a land which\nwas used by the authorities without acquisition or requisition either under theLand Acquisition Act, 1894 or under the Assam Land (Requisition andAcquisition) Act, 1964. Ordinarily, when the Court is exercising its jurisdiction\nunderArticle 226of the Constitution of India, is also a Court of equity and when\nthe State had taken the land of the petitioner without due process of law, in this\ncase the Court is not inclined to invoke the principle of "delay in its equity".7.        Nonetheless, in this case the respondents have not filed any affidavit-\nin-opposition to deny that the land was not acquired without due process of law.\nThe respondents have also not taken any stand that the land was offered to\nthem without expecting any consideration. Under such circumstances, the Court\nis of the considered opinion that as the land of the petitioner, which is a patta\nland, was used by the respondents for creating Lift Irrigation system. Therefore,\nthe petitioner would have a reasonable right to have his land acquired. The\npetitioner is entitled to a fair compensation and nothing more. The respondents\n                                                                         Page No.# 5/6\n\ncould not show that petitioner's predecessor-in-interest had offered the land\ngratuitously.8.            In so far as prayer for employment is concerned, the Court finds that\nthe said prayer is not in accordance with the scheme of public employment,\nwhich is prevailing under the constitutional scheme of the country and\ntherefore, the said prayer is rejected.9.        In so far as the claim of the petitioner for compensation is concerned,\nthe Court is of the considered opinion that the quantum of compensation ought\nnot to be examined in a writ petition underArticle 226of the Constitution of\nIndia as determination of compensation would require some amount of\nexamination of evidence, both documentary and oral, and therefore, if the\npetitioner seeks to proceed for monetary compensation, it would be open to the\npetitioner to approach the competent Civil Court, if so advised, subject to law of\nlimitation.10.      In view of the discussion above, the Court finds that the petitioner has\na right to have his land acquired under the Assam Land (Requisition andAcquisition) Act, 1964 and/or under the Right to Fair Compensation and\nTransparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013, as\nthe case may be, as the Court finds the petitioner is entitled to fair\ncompensation, in accordance with the acquisition laws.11.       To enable the respondent authorities to initiate land acquisition\n                                                                       Page No.# 6/6\n\nproceeding, the petitioner shall produce a certified copy of this order before the\nChief Engineer (Irrigation), Assam and the said authority take steps to initiate\nland acquisition proceedings in accordance with law.12.      If the proceedings are not initiated within a outer period of 6 months\nfrom the date of service of certified copy of the order, it would be open to the\npetitioner to move the Civil Court for eviction of the respondents in accordance\nwith law and for restoration of land in his possession.13.      The writ petition stand allowed to the extend as indicated above. There\nshall be no order as to cost.JUDGE\n\n\n\nComparing Assistant