Law: Land Acquisition Act, 1894

Section: I,4,18

Land Acquisition Act (I of 1894)------Ss. 4 & 18 --- Acquisition of land --- Fair compensation, determination of --Scope --- Compensation declared through award was Rs.450,000/- per marla against which determination, landowners approached Referee /Trial Court, however, upon conclusion of trial, potential value of land was determined as Rs 5,000/- per Marla only --- Validity ---Relevant paragraph of the judgment passed by the Referee /Trial Court revealed that it (Court) determined impugned compensation (of Rs.5,000/- per Marla) while relying on a Notification having been placed/exhibited before it---High Court examined said Notification / Document but found it difficult to connect determined potential value of land of Rs.5,000/- per marla to the entry in Notification/document ---Strangely , the compensation declared through award was Rs.450,000/- per marla and Referee Court determined potential value at Rs.5,000/- per Marla, which presented a ludicrous situation---It was nobody's case that any typographical or arithmetical mistake or inadvertent omission occurred while passing the impugned judgment impugned as none of the parties had filed any application with the Referee Court in said behalf---Thus, remanding the matter for determination of quantum of compensation was only option to resolve the conundrum--- High Court set-aside impugned judgment passed by the Referee / Trial Court and remanded the matter to Referee Court for determination of the amount of compensation of the land-in-question in the light of the evidence recorded and available---Appeals were allowed accordingly.Date of hearing: 15th February, 2024JUDGMENTASIM HAFEEZ, J.---The judgment impugned through this Regular First Appeal is also under challenge through RFAs. Nos.25/2019, 241/2018 and 242/2018 - last of the two appeals are cross-appeals by the landowners / interested persons seeking compensation against acquisition of their land / properties. Dispute is regarding determination of fair compensation. Project is relating to the widening/improvement of old Shujabad road from…