SYED HAMEED SAB Vs. SECRETARY GRAMA PANCHAYAT

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THIS is a very ambitious appeal preferred under Section 4 of the Karnataka High Court (sic Act) by the very writ petitioners in W.P.No. 10388/2007, who are not satisfied with the chance success they found with the order of the learned Single Judge dated 12th November 2007 passed in the writ petition in their favour and, ill fact, got much more than what they had bargained in the writ petition, the writ petitioners, nevertheless, being not satisfied have come up with this appeal praying for setting aside the order dated 12. 11.2007 and to allow the writ petition granting the prayer as prayed in the writ petition.

(2.) THE brief facts which constitute the background to this appeal and the writ petition are: THE writ petitioners claim to be the legal heirs of one Syed Hameed Sab, who it was pleaded was the owner of the agricultural lands to an extent of 8 acres in Sy.No.548 of Chikka Jantakal village of Gangavathi Taluk in Koppal District. It is the version of the appellant-writ petitioners that the subject land, while was in the possession and ownership of their father Mr. Syed Hameed Sab till the year 1960-61, thereafter, it had been used for the purpose of establishing Harijan Colony and was taken over by the Government for renabilitating the landless persons belonging to the Harijan community and under the Ashraya Scheme for providing house sites to the landless and deprived class of persons. It is the further version that the revenue entries in the revenue records from the year 1963 indicated that the land was in the possession and ownership of Syed Hameed Sab, S/o Ameensab and it bad been acquired by the Government for being used as Harijan Colony and was being used for such purpose; that in terms of the order dated 28.02.2006 passed by the Assistant Commissioner, Koppal Sub-Division, Koppal, in exercise of his appellate jurisdiction under Section 136(2) of the Karnataka Land Revenue Act, it had been ordered that the names of the appellant therein - the present writ petitioners claiming to be legal heirs of Syed Hameed Sab - are to be entered in column No.9 of the RTC, and further in terms of a resolution of the Grama Panchayat, Chikka Jantakal and based on the affidavits given by the Secretary of this Gram Panchayat and the Chief Executive Officer of the Taluka Panchayat, Gangavathi, that if no compensation had been paid in respect of the subject land for the same having been acquired by the Government, having regard to the pathetic condition in which the appellants were placed, it was proper to provide them suitable compensation which was the opinion of the general public in the village and it was reflected in the affidavits of the Secretary of the Grama Panchayat and the Chief Executive Officer of the Taluka Panchayat, Gangavathi. On the basis of the admissions made by these Officers and in view of the order, the writ petition was presented claiming compensation for acquisition of the subject land with the following prayer. TV. PRAYER: Wherefore, the petitioners pray that this Hon'ble Court be pleased to:

(3.) SUBSEQUENTLY, the Court being invited to peruse the affidavit filed by the 3rd respondent-Assistant Commissioner, Koppal Sub-division, Koppal, and the contents being not very convincing, this Court directed the very Assistant Commissioner, who had passed the order under Annexure-H, to be present before the Court as per the order dated 27.05.2009. When the matter had come up for further orders on 10.06.2009, on examination of the submissions and affidavit placed before the Court, the following order came to be passed: