In Brief
This civil appeal challenged the dismissal of a reference application under the Land Acquisition Act, 1894 for non-payment of court fee, which the High Court declined to restore. The Supreme Court allowed the appeal partly, directing the Reference Court to restore the application upon payment of the requisite court fee within one month. However, the Court imposed a condition: if any enhancement is granted, the appellant would forfeit all statutory benefits for the entire period from the original dismissal date to the restoration date, thus balancing procedural compliance with substantive fairness.
The lawyer headnote and full judgment text are available to registered users.