V. SREENIVASAIAH Vs. STATE OF KARNATAKA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) It is the case of the petitioner that he is the absolute owner of the agricultural lands in question bearing joint khata in Sy. No. 1/1A measuring 5 acres 30 guntas and in Sy. No. 1/3 measuring 4 acres 31 guntas situated at Hosahalli Village, Uttarahalli Hobli, Bangalore South Taluk, Bangalore. It is stated that the fifth respondent, namely, the Ex-servicemen House Building Co-operative Society Limited (hereinafter referred to as 'the Society', for brevity) is registered under the Karnataka Co-operative Societies Act, 1959, in the year 1973. It is stated that the Society had passed a resolution dated 23-12-1983, to enter into an agreement with the sixth respondent and to pay an advance amount of money, to enable him to expedite the proposed acquisition proceedings in respect of lands which were identified by the Society and in respect of which the sixth respondent was again enabled to negotiate on behalf of the Society with the landowners. The petitioner's father was one such landowner who had unwittingly affixed his signature to a purported agreement of sale in respect of the petitioner's land in question. The petitioner has alleged that the Society did not consist of genuine ex-servicemen and that it was only a front to acquire land in the name of a public purpose and to later deal with the same as real estate for the benefit of a few. And that the sixth respondent was an agent whose engagement in the process as a go between for the Society and the State Government was illegal and a fraud on power.

(2.) The State Government having woken upto the large scale illegalities committed by several such House Building Societies, such as the Society herein, had on 18-6-1985 issued directions that acquisition of land for any Housing Society could only be pursuant to a housing scheme and could be acquired only through the Bangalore Development Authority.

(3.) Incidentally, the jurisdictional Assistant Commissioner is said to have initiated suo motu proceedings under the provisions of the Karnataka Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prohibition of Transfer of Certain Lands) Act, 1978 (hereinafter referred to as 'the PTCL Act', for brevity) on 28-10-1996 in respect of the petitioner's lands. However, the same were dropped by an order dated 31-3-1997. Though an appeal against the same was allowed and the Assistant Commissioner was directed to decide the matter afresh, it was again dropped by an order dated 30-10-2001. The petitioner is said to have filed an appeal again. The same was dismissed on 26-4-2004. The same had been challenged by way of a writ petition in W.P. No. 27298 of 2004 before this Court, which was dismissed on 1-12-2009. The dismissal was affirmed in appeal in W.A. No. 369 of 2009 by judgment dated 22-6-2009. A special leave petition filed before the Supreme Court also is said to have been summarily dismissed by an order dated 25-4-2011.