ABDUL HAMEED DOGAR, J.-- The petitioners seek leave to appeal against the order dated 15.6.2000 of the Division Bench of High Court of Sindh Bench at Sukkur passed in 1st Civil Appeal No. 8 of 1996, whereby the appeal of the petitioners was dismissed being incompetent and not maintainable.
2. The facts leading to the filing of the petition are that an area measuring 18.74 acres belonging to respondent No. 1 was acquired for construction of the electric Grid Station at Jacobbad, Accordingly a notification under Section 4 of the Land Acquisition Act, 1894 (hereinafter referred to as the "Act") was got published in the Sindh Government Gazette dated 25.4.1993 whereby total land measuring 129.25 acres was acquired for installation of Grid Station and Sui Gas installation for P.A.F. Base, Shahbaz Jacobabad. Thereafter another notification under Section 6 and 17(4) of the Act was got published in the Gazette on 15.5,1994 whereby the land of respondent No. 1 viz 18.34 acres in Deh Rindwahi Taluka and District Jacobabad was acquired by the Ministry of Defence, and an Award amounting' to Rs. 8,02,63,111/- was passed on 7.3.1995 by the respondent No. 2 the Land Acquisition Officer. Being aggrieved the Government of ' Sindh through Collector, District Jacobabad made a reference under Section 18(3) of the Act to the Distt: Judge for determination and re-examination of the Award on the ground that the land in question was banjar kadeem and is not commercial and that the price of land was already properly assessed at the rate of Rs.
85,000/- per acre by the respondent No. 2 the Land Acquisition Officer, but in the Award it has been fixed at Rs. 85/-per sq.Ft i.e. Rs. 37,02,600/- per acre. The reference was rejected and the Award passed by the Land acquisition Officer was maintained.
3. Mr. S. Zaki Muhammad, for the petitioners argued that in view of an amendment made in sub- section (3) of Section 18 of the Land Acquisition Act vide (Sindh Amendment) Ordinance, 1992 the appeal filed by the petitioners before the High Court was competent. According to said amendment the words "the Provincial Government, the words and commas "The Federal Government", the "Provincial Government", a Company or a local authority have been substituted as such the petitioners being representative were competent to file the appeal.
4. On the other side the counsel for respondent No. 1 contended that the appeal was incompetent as it was not filed through the concerned Secretary of Federal Government and concerned Secretary of Provincial Government, consequently it was to be dismissed. He however, frankly conceded that the High Court while disposing of the appeal has neither attended to the said plea nor to the above said amendment.
5. We have given anxious thought to the above contentions and have perused the amendment as well As the impugned order: Admittedly the learned High Court while disposing of the appeal has not dealt with the above now raised plea nor to the amendment, as such we feel it appropriate to remand the case to the learned Sindh High Court for its disposal on merits in accordance with law.
6. Accordingly, the Petition is converted into an appear and is allowed. The impugned order is set- aside and the matter is remanded to the High Court of Sindh Bench at Sukkur for disposal according to law within four months by allowing the parties full opportunity of hearing,