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NON-REPORTABLE IN THE SUPREME COURT OF INDIA CIVIL APPELLATE JURISDICTION CIVIL APPEAL NO. 283 OF 2016

[@ SPECIAL LEAVE PETITION (C) NO. 7246 OF 2015] SUBHASH AGARWAL & ORS.                     Appellant(s)

                               VERSUS STATE OF HARYANA & ORS.                    Respondent(s)

J U D G M E N T KURIAN, J. 1. Leave granted.   2. The  appellants  approached  the  High  Court  of  Punjab and Haryana in CWP No. 21211 of 2014 with the  following prayer :-

"(a) Praying for issuance of a Writ in  

the  Nature  of  Certiorari  and  of  any  

other  appropriate  Writ,  Direction  or  

Order and for quashing of the order dt.  

24.06.2014  at  Annexure  P-18  to  the  

extent of applicability of the 'current  

rates' which in the humble pleading of  

the  petitioner  are  not  applicable  as  

prayed in the aforesaid pleadings.

(b) Praying  that  the  alleged  

acquisition  proceedings  u/s  6  of  the  

Land Acquisition Act 1894 may kindly be  

declared  to  have  'lapsed'  &  disputed  

land be kindly released /transferred in  

the  name  of  the  petitioner  on  the

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aforesaid grounds.

(c) For kindly issuing a direction by  

holding  that  the  land  of  petitioners  

already stood released in the view of  

letter  No.  R.A-1-79/44484  dt.  

07.07.1979 Annexure P-4 & upholding the  

agreement dt. 08.04.1981 Annexure P-9.

(d) Praying that the records of the  

respondent  be  kindly  summoned  before  

this Hon'ble Court.   

(e) The Hon'ble Court is being prayed  

to grant any other relief as deem fit  

and  proper  under  the  facts  &  

circumstances and nature of the case."

3. The Writ Petition was dismissed by the High Court  in a cryptic manner and the impugned Judgment reads  as follows:-

"The  petitioners  have  prayed  for  

quashing  the  notifications  dated  

04.11.1977 (Annexure P2) and 01.11.1980  

(Annexure P8) issued under Sections 4  

and  6  of  the  Land  Acquisition  Act,  

1894.   

The  land  of  the  petitioners  was  

situated in village Mewla Maharajpur,  

Tehsil Ballabgarh, District Faridabad.

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The acquition has been done more than  

37 years ago.  

No  ground  for  interference  is  made  

out as the acquisition proceedings are  

already complete

Dismissed"

4. In our opinion, the approach taken by the High  Court is not proper in the facts and circumstances of  the case.  The High Court should have addressed the  issues  and  should  have  passed  orders  on  the  main  reliefs.  We refrain ourselves from making further  observations in this regard.   5. Therefore, we set aside the impugned Judgment and  remand the Writ Petition to the High Court, to be  considered on merits. 6. We make it clear that we have not expressed any  opinion on the merits of the case and it will be open  to  the  parties  to  raise  all  available  contentions  before the High Court.        7. In  view  of  the  above,  the  Civil  Appeal  is  disposed of with no order as to costs.     

.......................J.               [ KURIAN JOSEPH ]  

.......................J.               [ ROHINTON FALI NARIMAN ]  New Delhi; January 18, 2016.