ISHWAR DUTT vs LAND ACQUISITION COLLECTOR . — C.A. No. 443/2001

Case Summary: Ishwar Dutt v. Land Acquisition Collector Decision: The Supreme Court allowed the appeal and affirmed the Reference Court's award, setting aside the High Court's judgment that had reduced interest payments. The Court held that the High Court's earlier 1985 writ order directing 12% equitable interest from the date of possession had attained finality through res judicata principles and could not be revisited in subsequent proceedings, even when a later Supreme Court precedent suggested different statutory interpretation. Key Reasoning: Once the 1985 writ petition order was acted upon and the Land Acquisition Officer's 1991 award incorporated the 12% interest direction, both orders became final and binding. The respondent State could have challenged this under Section 18 but did not, thereby waiving its right. The doctrine of res judicata prevents reopening settled judicial determinations in subsequent stages of the same proceeding unless fraud or collusion is alleged. A writ of mandamus must be obeyed unless overruled or validated by legislation. This case analysis is maintained by casestatus.in based on publicly available court records.