Calcutta High Court (Appellete Side)
Asansol Durgapur Development ... vs Sri Priya Kumar Mukherjee & Ors on 19 March, 2015
Author: Jyotirmay Bhattacharya
Bench: Jyotirmay Bhattacharya
1
19.03.2015. F. A. T. 296 of 2014
dc. with
CAN 5735 of 2014
with
CAN 5736 of 2014
Asansol Durgapur Development Authority
versus
Sri Priya Kumar Mukherjee & Ors.
Mr. Raja Basu Chowdhury,
Mr. Rajarshi Dutta,
Mr. Sayantan Bose ... For the Appellant/Applicant.
Mr. Jahar Lal Roy ... For the Respondent No.1.
Mr. Lalit Mohan Mahata, Mr. Prasanta Behari Mahata ... For the State-Respondents.
Re: CAN 5735 of 2014 (Condonation of delay) The instant appeal was filed beyond the prescribed period of limitation. There was 194 days delay in filing this appeal.
Reason for the delay has been explained by the appellant/applicant in the application for condonation of delay. It is stated therein that the impugned judgement and decree was passed by the Learned L.A. Judge in a reference case under Section 18 of the Land Acquisition Act on 30th August, 2013.
After passing the impugned judgement and decree on 30th August, 2013, the Special Land Acquisition Collector, 2 Burdwan by his letter dated 26th September, 2013 requested the Chief Executive Officer of the appellant to consider as to whether an appeal would be preferred against the said decree or not. The Requiring Body by its letter dated 22nd October, 2013 informed the Special Land Acquisition Officer that this was a fit case for preferring an appeal. Even the grounds on which such appeal should be preferred were also mentioned by the Requiring Body in its said letter.
Thereafter an opinion was sought for from the learned Government Pleader, Burdwan on 26th November, 2013 as to whether such appeal should be filed or not. The learned Government Pleader opined that an appeal should be preferred against the said judgement and decree of the learned L.A. Judge.
The reason as to why such opinion was not sought for from the learned Government Pleader, Burdwan immediately on receipt of the letter of the Requiring Body dated 22nd October, 2013 remains unexplained.
Though the learned Government Pleader, Burdwan advised for filing an appeal on 26th November, 2013, the Additional District Magistrate (LA) did not take any further step for filing an appeal immediately thereafter. The Additional District Magistrate (LA) by his letter dated 9th January, 2014 intimated the Government Pleader's advice for filing the appeal to the Land Reforms Department, LA (Law Branch). Reason for such delay also remains unexplained.
3Ultimately the Chief Executive Officer of the appellant decided to prefer an appeal, but the date on which such decision was taken has not been mentioned in this application. However, he by his letter dated 25th March, 2014 requested the Land and Land Reforms Department, Land Acquisition Branch of the State of West Bengal to file an appeal. Thereafter on 12th April, 2014, papers relating to this matter were sent to the petitioner's advocate-on-record. A conference was held on 17th April, 2014 and thereafter the memorandum of appeal was drafted and ultimately this appeal was filed on 10th June, 2014.
The way in which the delay has been explained by the appellant/applicant in this application for condonation of delay is not very much Satisfactory. We do not find any diligence on the part of the appellant in taking steps for filing this appeal. However, we are not unmindful of the fact that in case of Government's appeal, no individual officer of the Government can take independent decision for filing appeal. Thus slow movement of the file from one table to the other is one of the prime causes resulting in such delay. As such, some relaxation is needed so far as the Government litigant is concerned, but at the same time we should see that the adversaries should be compensated properly for the loss they have suffered due to such delay in filing this appeal. After all the claimant/respondent no.1 is deprived of his property and at the same time, he is deprived of enjoyment of the compensation money payable to him for acquiring his interest in the said property for a substantial period of time.
4We thus allow the appellant's application for condonation of delay subject to payment of cost of Rs.50,000/- (rupees fifty thousand only) to be paid by the appellant to the claimant/respondent no.1 within two weeks from date.
The appeal will be registered on production of the receipt showing payment of such cost to the concerned department.
The application for condonation of delay being CAN 5735 of 2014 is thus disposed of.
Let the court fees paid by the appellant out of time be accepted in case the appeal is regularised.
(JYOTIRMAY BHATTACHARYA, J.) ( SAMAPTI CHATTERJEE, J. )