1. ' SAJJAD ALI SHAH, J.-This Letters Patent Appeal is filed against the judgment dated 16th November, 1979 of a learned Single Judge, whereby compensation has been awarded to the appellants at the rate of Rs, 7,500 per acre in Civil Reference No, 27 of 1969 under section 18 of Land Acquisition Act I of 1894.
2. ' Brief facts of the case are that the appellants owned agricultural land measuring 21 acres and 10 ghuntas, bearing Survey Nos. 156 and 160 in Deh Safooran, Karachi which was acquired by Government for expansion of R. T. School and Field Trial Research Unit at Karachi under Notifications dated 30th April, 1968 and 20th November, 1968 issued under sections 4 and 6 of the said Act. Subsequently compensation was awarded to the appellants in the sum of Rs, 1,24,168.23 at the rate of Rs, 5,000 per acre for total area of the land mentioned above. Appellants participated in the proceedings and claimed compensation at the rate of Rs, 15 per sq. Yd. Which was not accepted. The award and the reasons given therefor, are contained in order dated 23rd April, 1969.
3. The appellants accepted the award under protest and requested the Land Acquisition Officer to make a reference under section 18 of the said Act to the Court. Consequently reference No, 27 of 1969 was filed in which evidence was recorded and was disposed of by the impugned judgment as stated above.
4. ' There is an elaborate discussion of evidence produced by the parties to the proceedings and cogent reasons have been given by the learned Single Judge for coming to the conclusion, in the result whereof amount of compensation has been enhanced from Rs, 5,000 to Rs, 7,500 per acre plus statutory allowance of Rs, 15% on the amount of compensation and interest at such rate as permissible under the law on the amount of compensation or any part which had remained unpaid as from the date of possession of the land taken over by the Collector. This rate was fixed by the learned Single Judge in determining the market value of the land in dispute at the time of acquisition on the basis of evidence produced by the parties to the reference.
5. ' Before the learned Single Judge, in support of the contention raised on behalf of the appellants four transactions were cited to prove that market value of the disputed land is much more than determined by the Collector. The transactions so relied upon are as under :-
(1) Sale of land measuring 5 acres and 22 ghuntas, Survey No, 243 in Deh Thana Tapo Malir to Ismaila Youth Services vide sale-deed dated 5th November, 1965 photostat copy whereof available on the record as Exh. 4/1.
(2) Sale of one acre of land in Survey No, 164 in Deh Safooran on 15th July, 1968 under a registered sale-deed at Rs, 1,96,600.00.
(3) Sale of 2300 sq. Yd. From Survey No, 157 by claimants to one Sardar in the year 1956 at the rate of Rs, 3 per sq. Yd.
(4) Sale of Survey No, 19 to Karachi Race Club on 14th December, 1968 at Rs, 14,500 per acre.
6. ' During the proceedings of the reference, three witnesses were examined namely Rahim Kassim, Juma Khan and Muhammad Umar. Witness Rahim Kassim produced sale-deed in respect of agricultural plot in Survey No, 243 in Deh Thano which was sold to Ismailia Youth Services at the rate of Rs, 6 per sq. Yd. The total area was 5 acres and 22 ghuntas and the price paid was Rs, 1,61,172. The said land is about 3 to 4 miles away from Jinnah Avenue. This witness has further depre,-1 that the land purchased is situate in Mahr pity and is adjacent to Ismailia Girls School which is a project of Ismailia Youth Services. He has further stated that the purchased land is on main Karachi-Hyderabad Highway. The learned Single Judge has held that the sale of the land mentioned above cannot be made criterion for determining the market value of the land in- dispute for the reason that the land purchased by Ismailia Youth Services was situate near the Ismailia Girls School to make a provision for playground for the use of the students of Ismailia Girls School and Prince Aga Khan Boys Academy which was also nearby. The location of the land purchased was such that the Ismailia Youth Services had to purchase the land at higher price as it was indispensible to them. Another reason assigned is that the land purchased is situate on Karachi-Hyderabad Highway near Malir City.
7. ' With regard to the second transaction mentioned above relied upon by the appellants, Muhammad Umar Supervising Tapedar in the office of Deputy Commissioner Karachi has testified that the transaction relates to one acre of land in Survey No, 164 in Deh Safooran which took place on 16th July, 1968 under a registered sale-deed. This land was a 'sikni' land converted to commercial purposes and adjacent to Hostellere de France opposite Star Gate on the main Highway. It was sold at Rs, 1,936.00. It was rightly held by the learned Single Judge that location of this land was such that it would be expected to fetch higher price and more over the hotel was already situate on that land, which is already on the main Highway. That land was also acquired for commercial purposes.
8. ' Third transaction is in respect of sale of 2,300 sq. Yds. In Survey No, 157 by the appellants to one Malik Sardar on 28th May, 1966 at the rate of Rs, 3 per sq. Yd. Muhammad Umar Supervising Tapedar has confirmed this fact in his deposition. He has further explained that there was already a hotel on this particular plot and the land was also sold for commercial purposes. He stated further that this plot is in advantageous location as it is situate near Security Printing Press, Plant Protection Office, Malir Halt Station, Siddiq Village, K-R. T. C. Office and T & T office. This plot is on Jinnah Avenue and the main Karachi-Hyderabad Highway.
9. ' The fourth transaction mentioned above is in respect of sale of survey No, 19 to Karachi Race Club at the rate of Rs, 14,520,00 per acre on 4th December, 1968 for the purpose of race course. This land measures 8 acres and 30 ghuntas. This land is also towards Country Club Road. This land was also for commercial purposes. The learned Single Judge has rightly rejected the argument raised on behalf of the appellants that the transactions mentioned above should be considered in order to determine the market value of the land in dispute. The reasons given for rejection are perfectly justifiable. There were compelling circumstances as in transactions Nos. 1 and 2 to purchase the plots at higher price, additionally that the lands in transaction Nos. 1, 2 and 3 were on the main Highway and also the reason that these transactions were for commercial purposes. There were other transaction also which were cited on behalf of the appellants. One such transaction is purchase of land by Messrs Islamic Estate Builders at the rate of Rs, 14,520 per acre. The reasons advanced for rejection of this transaction for the purpose of determining the market value of the land in-dispute, as given by the learned Single Judge are that this land is situate at the Country Club Road side and is at a distance of 8-9 miles from Gulshan-e-Iqbal Scheme. Apart from the value being more because of its being situate in Country Club Road side, the sale took place in the year 1969.
10. ' It is also deposed by Muhammad Umar that Exh. 5/1 relates to the land acquired for Printing Press in Deh Mehran and Deh Than. This acquisition was made on 2nd May, 1967 and the compensation awarded was at Rs, 10,000 per acre for agricultural land. The witness further explained that Deh Thano is a garden area and has sufficient water. In Deh Mehran are Model Colony, Saudabad and Malir Colony. The land mentioned in Exh. 5/1 is one mile away from the disputed land but has the advantages mentioned above. This witness has further testified with regard to the disputed land that it is situate at the 11th mile from Karachi on the Highway from Karachi to Hyderabad but this land is not on the main high, way and is one furlong inside. The disputed land has frontage towards Jinnah Avenue. Muhammad Umar Supervising Tapedar also prepared the sketch and produced the same as Exh. 6/1 in the court before the learned Single Judge. This sketch shows survey Nos. 156 and 160 of the disputed land some distance away from the main Highway and in between the survey numbers and the main Highway is the plant protection. Survery No, 160 has frontage on Jinnah Avenue road and further both these survey numbers have one side towards control area of airport. It has also come in the evidence of this witness that the disputed land is situate in Military guarded area near the airport and the construction is restricted to one storey building and for this reason the value of land is less.
11. ' The learned Single Judge has taken into consideration the transactions made by Pak Ideal Cooperative Housing Society in the purchase of land in Deh Safooran to determine the market value of the land in dispute. It is in the evidence of Muhammad Umar that shares in Survey Nos. 68 to 82 in Deh Safooran were sold in 1968 at the rate of Rs, 5,000 per acre. On 18th November, 1968 the same Society purchased 15 acres from same survey numbers at the rate of Rs, 5,000 per acre.
12. These transactions do give some assistance for determining the market value of the land in dispute for the reasons that they relate to the land sold in the same area and also sold near about the same time but away from the main Karachi-Hyderabad Highway. The learned Single Judge was also impressed by the fact stated by Mohammad Umar Supervising Tapedar in his evidence that the lands in-dispute are waste lands and have no frontage on main Highway and also that restrictions are attached to the lands in dispute as they are situate in the Military guarded area for residential purposes more than one storey cannot be constructed on these lands. For these reasons the learned Single Judge increased the rate of compensation from Rs, 5,000 to Rs, 7,500 per acre.
13. ' Mr. Rahimtoola argued before us that in reference No, 1 of 1966 market value of lands situate in Deh Thano and Deh Meharan, acquired in 1949, was determined at the rate of Rs, 2 per sq. Yd. It was argued that relying upon this rate in another reference No, 3 of 1967 another learned Single Judge of the Court fixed the rate of lands in Deh Safooran, acquired in April, 1959 to Rs, 2 per sq. Yd. Which came to Rs, 7,642 per acre. In the impugned judgment the rate of compensation at Rs, 2 per sq. Yd.
14. Given in reference No, 1 of 1966 has been defended on the ground that the lands in that reference were situate in Deh Meharan and Deh Thano and similar transaction of sale, which took place in 1949 and 1947 were considered. It is also stated in the impugned judgment that reliance should have not been placed in reference No, 3 of 1967 on the rate of compensation fixed in reference No, 1 of 1966, which pertained to lands of different delis in which similar transaction pertaining to the years 1946, 47, 48 and 49 were considered and that evidence should not have been accepted as evidence of market rates of land situate in Deh Safooran during 1968 in reference No, 3 of 1967. It is also observed in the impugned judgment that there was a difference of about 20 years between the transactions considered in the two references and during that long interval of time the prices of the lands might have been depreciated. It was argued by Mr. Rahimtoolah that this observation cannot be factually correct for the reason that the prices of the lands have always been on constant increase and the Court should take judicial notice of that. By reading the impugned judgment minutely, we feel that the observation in the impugned judgment has been misunderstood because this observation has not been made the sole criterion on which the rate of compensation in the instant case has been determined. It is only a passing remark that it is possible that within a period of 20 years the price of land could have fluctuated in the sense that it could have increased as well as decreased. In any case the learned Single Judge has given very valid and cogent reasons in fixing the rate of compensation in the instant case by increasing it from Rs, 5,000 per acre to 7500 per acre. For that the learned Single Judge has given convincing reasons that the lands in dispute are situate in close proximity of Highway, although it has no frontage on the Highway. At the same time restrictions attached with the lands in dispute such as their location in the Military guarded area and prohibition for not constructing more than one storey on the said plots, have also been taken into account. We also feel that the lands indispute are very close to the Highway and about on Jinnah Avenue which branches out from the main highway as such its compensation should still be increased to a more reasonable extent. We cannot agree with the contention of Mr. Rahimtoolah that it should be at the rate of Rs, 10,000 per acre because in the instant case the plots in question have no frontage on the Highway and there are no peculiar pressing circumstances in the instant case. However, we increase the rate of compensation from Rs, 7,500 to Rs, 8,500 per acre with statutory benefits of interest etc. As provided under the relevant law on this increased amount. With this modification as specifically stated above, appeal is dismissed.