SANJEEVAPPA S/O LATE SHAMBAIAH; GOPAMMA, W/O LATE SANJEEVAPPA AND ORS Vs. KRISHNARAJENDRA CHARITABLE TRUST; SPECIAL DEPUTY COMMISSIONER AND ORS

JUDGEMENT

(1.) These appeals are preferred by the appellants challenging the legality and correctness of the order passed in W. P. No. 7514/2006 and other connected writ petitions dt. 25th March, 2009.

(2.) The subject matter of the writ petition is with regard to grant of land in respect of Sy. No. 69 of Kengeri village in Bangalore Urban District. According to the petition averments, Sy. No. 69 of Kengeri is measuring 111 acres 8 guntas, out of which 30 acres of land was granted to Sri. Krishnarajendra Charitable Trust for establishing an Ayurvedic hospital for a period of 30 years on lease, commencing from 25-8-2000. Based on the grant of lease in favour of the said Trust, the Trust intended to encroach the property granted to the appellants. The persons who were said to be in occupation as grantees belonging to weaker section of the society, raised an objection. In addition to the land granted to the aforesaid Trust, 3 acres of land was granted on lease in favour of Lions Club, 5 acres of land in favour of Jeevan Dharma Yoga Trust and 25 acres of land in favour of Adichunchanagiri Trust. The Special Deputy Commissioner, Bangalore District, in RRT. CR. 174/2/1995-96 initiated proceedings to cancel the khata made in favour of the appellants herein in Sy. No. 69 of Kengeri village. The appellants filed detailed objection stating that they were all unauthorised occupants of different extents of Sy. No. 69 of Kengeri village and they belonged to Scheduled Caste and considering their unauthorised cultivation in gomal land, the Deputy Commissioner decided to grant 2 acres of land at the first instance to each of the unauthorised occupants. Later on considering the extent of gomal land, the Deputy Commissioner decided to order grant of 1 acre 20 guntas to each of the occupants. Accordingly, based on the 'darkhast' records in LND. CR. 134/78-79 each of the appellants herein were granted 1 acre 20 guntas of land in Sy. No. 69 of Kengeri village and they have been cultivating the land as absolute owners, getting the land mutated to their name and by paying assessment. The Special Deputy Commissioner on the ground that though there was an order of grant in favour of these appellants, that no grant certificate was issued to them, cancelled the mutation records as per his order dt. 31-3-97.

(3.) Heard the learned Counsel for the appellant, Mr. Nataraj Additional Advocate General for the State and also the learned Counsel who are appearing for the contesting respondents, Mr. Shivamurthy for Jayakumar S. Patil Associates and Mr. V. Lakshminarayana.