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Land Acquisition Act, 1894: ss. 4, 11, 17 – Compensation – Grant of – Large piece of land allotted to DLF, including the scheduled piece of land of the appellant for which, the decree of permanent injunction was in operation – Scheduled piece of land subsequently acquired – High Court determined compensation at the rate of Rs. 1,10,000/- per square meter as per circle rate and also ordered deduction of development charges to the extent of 50% – On appeal, held: Determination of the compensation has to be made by taking into consideration the circle rate which was determined as per the market value – High Court rightly determined compensation at the rate of Rs. 1,10,000/- per square meter as per circle rate – As regards deduction of development charges to the extent of 50% made by High Court, the High Court did not take into consideration all the factors encircling the issue and routinely proceeded with the maximum deduction of 50% development charge – Scheduled piece of land is a costly land, being situated at the centre of development of authority, has commercial use, and even a mall has been constructed on it – Without acquisition, the piece of land belonging to appellant was transferred to DLF and the acquisition was made subsequently – Possession of scheduled piece of land, though taken long back in year 2004-2005, but till date, the appellant has not been paid the compensation and is litigating before courts even up to subsequent rounds – In view thereof, deduction of development charges to the extent of 50% by High Court cannot be sustained – Also, the civil right of appellant is violated in breach of Art. 300-A – In view thereof, respondents directed to compute the amount of compensation by taking the circle rate of Sector -18, i.e., Rs. 1,10,000/-per square meter – Judgment of the High Court directing 50% deduction towards development charge set aside, however, the amount of solatium of 30% is payable – Statutory interest on the amount of compensation to be payable @ 9% from the date of taking over of possession, for a period of one year, thereafter, @ 15% p.a. to be paid, and in addition thereto, 3% penal interest to be paid – Constitution of India – Art. 300A. Compensation – Determination of – Held: Compensation can be determined by taking into consideration the circle rate which has been determined as per the market value – Market value of a property is the price that a willing purchaser would pay to a willing seller for it, taking into account its current condition, all existing advantages, and potential possibilities, while excluding any benefit resulting from the implementation of the scheme for which the property is compulsorily acquired – Thus, the market value is to be determined in the light of price paid by the purchaser of similar land in the neighbourhood of the land in question and in cases, where no records for such transaction/purchase is available, the minimum statutory value in accordance with Stamp Act must be taken as market value for circle rate – In no event, the compensation can be paid at a rate lesser than that of market value as determined for the purpose of payment of stamp duty under Stamp Act. Compensation – Determination of – Deduction of development charges – Quantum of – Held: There is no straight jacket formula to arrive at the quantum of deduction of development charge – It must be assessed based on the facts of the individual case after due consideration of all the factors, the nature of land to be acquired, the extent of area to be acquired, the extent of development in the adjoining land as well as land proposed to be acquired, the commercial potentiality and so on. Interest: Nature of – Held: Is a consideration paid either for the use of money or forbearance from demanding it after it has fallen due – Interest, whether it is statutory or otherwise, represents the profit, the creditor may have made if he had used the money or from the loss, he may have suffered because he could not use the amount. |
