KANTHIMATHY PLANTATIONS PVT. LTD. versus STATE OF KERALA & ORS.

Citation: [1989] SUPP. 1 S.C.R. 206 · Decided: 19-09-1989 · Supreme Court of India · Bench: RANGANATH MISRA · Disposal: Dismissed
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Judgment (excerpt)

A 
B 
KANTHIMATHY PLANTATIONS PVT. LID. 
v. 
STATE OF KERALA & ORS. 
SEPTEMBER 19, 1989 
[RANGANATH MISRA AND G.L. OZA, JJ.] 
Conititution of India 1950: Article 254--State Law-Central 
,Law-Repugnancy-Implied repeal. 
Kera/a Land Acquisition Act, 1961: Pending acquisition prO' 
C ceedings-Whether can be continued under the Land Acquisition Act, 
1894 (As amended by Central Act 68 of I984) after its coming into 
force-Initiation of fresh procedure under the Land Acquisition Act, 
1894--Whether necessary. 
Proceedings for acquisition of the land belonging to the petitioner 
D were initiated nuder the Kerala Land Acquisition Act, 1961 viz. a State 
law. A writ petition filed by the petitioner challenging the acquisition 
was dismissed by the High Court. Thereafter the Central Act I of 1894 
viz. Land Acquisition Act, 1894, as amended by Act 68 of 1984, became 
applicable to the State of Kerala. Consequently the Kerala Act ceased to 
be in force. Without issuing a fresh notification under the Central Act, 
E the Land Acquisition Officer issued notice for making the award. 
The petitioner filed another petition in "the High Court for quash-
ing the said notice and the continua11ce of the proceedings on the ground 
that in the absence of fresh procedural steps envisaged by the Land 
Acquisition Act, 1894 the award could not be made. This petition was 
f 
also dismissed by the High Court. 
In this appeal on the question: whether in the absence of a specific 
provision in the Central Act 68 of 1984, the acquisition proceedings 
taken under the Kerala Land Acquisition Act of 1961, could be con-
tinued under the Land Acquisition Act of 1894. 
Dismissing the appeal, the Court, 
HELD: The provisions of the Land Acquisition Act, 1894 as 
amended by the Amending Act 68 of 1984, were substantially different 
from ~lie erovisioits In the Kera la Land Acquisition Ad. 1961. In view 1of 
iii the fact that lhe Land Acquisition Act of 1894 became applicable to ihe 
ZOti 
K. PLANTATIONS v. STATE OF KERALA [MISRA, J.I 
207 
State of Kerala and in view of the repugnant provisions, in terms of 
A 
Article 254 of the Constitution the Kerala Act stood repealed. There is 
no provision made in the Amending act to i.ndicate repeal of tile State 
law but application of Article 254 is automatic to situations where it is. 
applicable -and by the operation of thlS Article the State Act stood 
repealed and the Central Act became applicable. [208F-G] 
Steps taken under the Kerala Land Acquisition Act; opto declara• 
lion under section 6 which had been upheld by High Court were valid 
steps and there was no effacing thereof on account of the deemed repeal 
of the State Act by the Amending Act of 1984. It was, therefore, open to 
the Land Acquisition Officer to continue the pending proceeding from 
the stage where it was at the time of coming inio force of the Centra' 
Act. [209H; 2IOA] . 
Deep Chand v. State of Uttar Pradesh & Ors., [1959] Suppl. 2 
S.C.R. 8, followed. 
B 
c 
CIVIL APPELLATE JURSIDICTION: Civil Appeal No. 3999 
D 
of 1989. 
From the Judgment and Order dated 8.12.1988 of the Kerala 
High Court in O.P. No. 3771of1985. 
G. Viswanatha Iyer and S. Balakrishnan for the Appellant. 
E, 
P.S. Poti, M.M. Abdul Khader, R. Nambiar and N. Sudhakaran 
for the Respondents. 
The Judgment of the Court was delivered by 
RA:"llGANATH MISRA, J. Special leave granted. 
The short point for consideration in this appeal directed against 
the judgment of the Kerala High Court dated 8.12.1988 in a writ 
petition under Art. 226 of the Constitution is whether in the absence of 
F 
a specific provision in Central Act 68 of 1984 amending the Land 
G 
Acquisition Act, 1 of 1894, the acquisition proceedings taken under 
the Kerala Land Acquisition Act of 1961, Act 21 of 1962, can be 
continued under the Land Acquisition Act of 1894. 
The preliminary notification of acquisition had been made on 
6.5:1980 under s. 3(1) of the Kerala Act,~orresponding to s. 4(1) of 
H 
A 
B 
c 
D 
R 
F 
G 
208 
SUPREME COURT REPORTS 
[ 1989] Supp. 1 S.C.R. 
the Act of 1894. Declaration under s. 6 was published on 2.6.1981. 
Further proceeding in the acquisition matter was held up on account of 
a challenge before the High Court by way of a writ petition to the 
declaration. On 14.8.1984, the writ petition was dismissed. The 
petitioner has conceded that the Land Acquisition Act of 1894 was 
extended to the State when the Amending Act of 1984 was brought 
into force. On 10th of April, 19
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