ORDER
47 RULE 1 - DOCTRINE OF MERGER - REVIEW PETITION FILED - MAINTAINABILITY - Civil Court after fixing the market value did not award interest on solatium and additional market value - Batch of MFA's filed seeking interest on solatium and additional market value - Batch of MFA's dismissed on the ground that explanation offered for delay was not satisfactory - The land owners thereafter field petitions under Section 114 read with Order 47 Rule 1 of CPCs under Section 151 CPC in the Civil Court seeking to review its judgment and order dated 30.11.98 - Said Review petitions dismissed by Civil Courts - CRP's preferred to High Court - Learned Single Judge referring the same to Division Bench -Whether review petitions filed by the petitioners before the Civil Court under Order 47 Rule 1 read with Section 114 and 151 CPC are maintainable - Whether the award passed by Civil Court on 30.11.98 merges with the order of learned Single Judge in the batch of MFA's - HELD - This Court revises or modifies or affirms an award passed by the Civil Court only if it condones the delay in preferring an appeal against such award and hears such appeal on merit in exercise of its appellate jurisdiction. If this Court in earlier batch of MFA's were to condone the delay in preferring the appeals and dispose of the appeals with or without reasons, by affirmance as otherwise, the orders of the Civil Court would have merged with the judgment of this Court. In that event, it was not permissible for the owners of the acquired lands to move the Civil Court by way of review, because the judgments and awards of the Civil Courts by way of review become the judgments and awards of the Civil Court have merged with the judgment of this Court. This is not the situation in this case. Therefore, the Review Petitions filed before Civil Court is maintainable.
(C) LAND ACQUISITION ACT, 1894 - SECTIONS 28, 34 - GRANT OF INTEREST ON SOLATIUM AND ADDITIONAL MARKET VALUE - HELD - It is the duty of the Land Acquisition Officer / the Court to grant interest on solatium and additional market value once the conditions prescribed under Sections 28 or 34 of the Act are satisfied to the owners suo motu, denial of that relief to the owners of the acquired land would be totally unjust, illegal and violative of Sections 28 and 34 of the Act. It becomes imperative for the Land Acquisition Officer or the Court to pay interest on solatium and additional market value as a statutory duty without waiting for a demand or application from the owner on the acquired land.
(D) LAND ACQUISITION ACT, 1894 - SECTIONS 28, 34 - GRANT OF INTEREST ON SOLATIUM AND ADDITIONAL MARKET VALUE - PROCEDURAL HAZARDS DELAYING SUCH AMOUNT TO THE OWNERS - HELD - There is a statutory direction to the Land Acquisition Officer/ the Court to pay the interest. Therefore, in all fairness, interests of justice and in performance of statutory obligations, the Land Acquisition Officer ought to have paid interest on solatium and additional market value, particularly, because even according to the State Government, the petitioners are entitled to interest, without waiting for the proceedings being initiated by the affected, uprooted owners of the acquired land. Procedural hazard can never be good and valid reason for the State to deny substantive right of the owners of the acquired land to receive interest on solatium and additional market value.
(E) CIVIL PROCEDURE CODE, 1908 ( 5/1908) - SECTIONS 115, 151 - REVISIONAL JURISDICTION - The High Court has suo motu power to revise orders of the Civil Court by virtue of the power conferred upon it under Section 115 CPC where total failure of justice would have occasioned or where irreparable loss would have been caused to the parties against whom it was made. This is one of such cases where the Court is convinced that it should exercise its powers under Section 115 conjointly with its inherent power under Section 151 CPC to do justice. Otherwise, it would occasion irreparable substantial loss to the petitioners.
CRP's allowed.