MUNICIPAL CORPORATION OF DELHIversusLICHHO DEVI AND ORS.

A                   MUNICIPAL CORPORATION OF DELHI
                                            v.
                              LICHHO DEVI AND ORS.

                                SEPTEMBER 1, 1997

B               [DR. A.S. ANAND AND K. VENKATASWAMI, JJ.]

             Land Acquisition Act, 1894:

             S.11-A-Award not made within stipulated period-Writ peti-
C tion--Order staying dispossession of petitioner brought to notice of High
  Court-High Court observed that the order did not imply stay of acquisition
  proceedi11gs--High Cowt declaring the Notification of 110 effect and releasi11g
  the la11d from acquisition 11otificatiol!-Held, the stay order i11 the installt case
  tantamounts to stay of further proceedings and, there[ore, the entire period
  during which stay order in operation was to be excluded while computi11g the
D period of two years prescribed for making the award-Matter remanded to
  High Court for deciding the case on merits.

             Govemment of Tamil Nadu & Aw. v. Vasantha Bai, [1995) Supp. 2
     sec 423, relied on.
E            CIVIL APPELLATE JURISDICTION : Civil Appeal No. 5938 of
     1997.

           From the Judgment and Order dated 22.8.96 of the Delhi High Court
     in C.W.P. No. 212 of 1985.

F            Ms. Madho Tewatia for Ranbir Yadav for the Appellant.

             Keshav Dayal, R.K. Saini, Rishikesh for the Respondents.

             The following Order of the Court was delivered :

G            Leave granted.

           The High Court, after hearing arguments in Civil Writ Petition filed
     by the respondents held that since the Award had not been made within
     the period stipulated by the statute (Section llA), the notification concern-
     ing acquisition of Khasra Nos. 127 and 173 had to be declared to be of no
·H   effect and after making that order, released to two Khasra numbers from
                                            662
                   MUNICIPAL CORPN. OF DELHI v. LICHHO DEVI                     663

      the acquisition notifications vide order dated 22.8.1996. This appeal calls      A
      that order in question.
...           The attention of the High Court had been drawn to the stay order
      dated 25.4.1985, whereby during the pendency of the Writ Petition, the
      dispossession of the petitioners had been stayed by the High Court to urge
      that the period during which the stay order was in operation had to be B
      excluded for computing the prescribed period under Section llA of the
      Act. According to the High Court, however the order dated 25.4.1985
      concerned only the stay of dispossession of the writ petitioners and it could
      not, in any way be interpreted to imply stay of acquisition proceedings. The .
      approach of the High Court is erroneous. This question is no longer C
      res-integra. In Government of Tamil Nadu.& Anr. v. Vasantha Bai, [1995]
      Supp. 2 SCC 423, a Bench of this Court has held that the stay order of the
      type that was granted in the instant case, tantamounts to stay of further
      proceedings being taken and therefore the entire period during which the
      stay order was in operation was to be excluded while computing the period
      of two years prescribed for making an Award under Section llA of the D
      Act. The view taken by the High Court, is, therefore, not sustainable.

             We, however, fmd that the High Court has not dealt with the merits
      of the writ petition and quashed the notification on an erroneous inter-
      pretation of the stay order. We, therefore, while accepting this appeal and      E
      setting aside the order of the High Court, remand the Writ Petition to the
      High Court for its fresh disposal in accordance with law on the other points
      raised in the writ petition. It shall be open to the parties to raise all such
      pleas, as are available to them, including the subsequent events during the
      arguments in the High Court. We request the High Court to dispose of the
      writ petition expeditiously and not to construe any observation made by us       F
      in this order as an expression of opinion on the merits of the case. No costs.

      R.P.                                                     Appeal disposed of.