Law: Land Acquisition Act (I of 1894)

Section: 12 , 18

  Land Acquisition Act (I of 1894)--- ----Ss.12 & 18---Azad Jammu and Kashmir Interim Constitution Act (VIII of 1974), S. 42---Collector's refusal to make reference to Court on ground that application for such reference was time-barred---Validity---Service of notice on affected persons was legal requirement in terms of S. 12, Land Acquisition Act, 1894---No adverse action can be taken against any person by keeping him in dark---Where petitioners were kept in dark about proceeding or order of award, limitation was to run from date of knowledge---Where application under S. 18, Land Acquisition Act, 1894 was moved within few days from date of knowledge, same was in no way barred by time---Collector acted illegally by rejecting application for reference to Court and his order was declared to be without lawful authority and of no legal effect---Order of High Court was set aside and Collector was directed to refer matter for determination of Court in accordance with law. Raja Harish Chandra Raj Singh v. The Deputy Land Acquisition Officer and another AIR 1961 SC 1500 rel. Mst. Sardar Begum v. Lahore Improvement Trust, Lahore PLD 1972 Lab. 458 and Allahdino v. Fakir Muhammad   PLD 1969 SC 582 ref. Raja Hassan Akhtar, Advocate for Appellants. Ch. Muhammad Yusuf, Advocate-General for Azad Government. Date of hearing: 24th June, 1996. JUDGMENT- BASHARAT AHMAD SHAIKH, J.---This is an appeal to challenge the order passed by the High Court dismissing the writ petition filed by the present appellants to challenge the order passed by the Collector, Land Acquisition by which he held that an application under section 18 of the Land Acquisition Act was-time-barred. The admitted facts are that award was announced on 5th of June, 1991 but neither the present appellants were present nor were they ever informed through a notice that the award had been announced. The appellants came to know about the existence of the award and filed an application for obtaining certified copy, which was delivered to them on 12th of December, 1991. It is the case of the appellants that they filed application for obtaining a certified copy immediately after acquiring knowledge that…