E RAMA MURTHY Vs. GOVERNMENT OF ANDHRA PRADESH

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The petitioners are the brothers and owners of 2 acres of land comprised in S.Nos.639, 640, 641/2 and 641/3 situate in Suryapet village and Mandal, Nalgonda District totally admeasuring Ac.3-29 guntas. The above land owned by the petitioners and one Smt. Erlapati Lakshmamma, wife of Venkatanarayana, is sought to be acquired under the provisions of the Land Acquisition Act, 1894 (for short "the Act") for the public purpose, to wit, for providing additional accommodation to the existing A.P.S.W. Residential School-Junior College for Girls, Suryapet. The petitioners have sought for quashing the notification issued under Section 4(1) of the Act in G.O. Rt. No.280, Social Welfare (SWRS) Department dated 3-6-1998 and declaration issued under Section 6 of the Act in Government Memo No.21826/Social Welfare (SWRS) Department dated 4-6-1998 and subsequent consequential actions taken by the respondent State authorities.

(2.) The background facts that led to the filing of the present writ petition be noted briefly as under: On an earlier occasion the Principal of the A.P. Social Welfare Gurukula School, Suryapet addressed a letter dated 25-9-1996 to the petitioners calling upon the petitioners to quote a rate for the sale of the subject land in favour of the school for providing additional accommodation to the existing A.P.S.W. Residential School/Junior College for Girls. The petitioners informed the Principal that they were not willing to sell the subject land in favour of the school. When the matters stood thus, at the behest of the Principal of the school, the Mandal Revenue Officer, Suryapet, the fourth respondent herein, issued proceedings in Memo No.A/2096/97 dated 21-5-1997 to the petitioners forcing them to alienate the land in favour of the school at the rate fixed by him, i.e., at the rate of Rs.2,00,000.00. At that stage, the petitioners filed Writ Petition No.14395 of 1997 in this Court against the said proceedings. That writ petition was heard and finally disposed of by this Court by its order dated 8-7-1997 directing the respondents therein (1) Revenue Divisional Officer, Suryapet, (2) Mandal Revenue Officer, Suryapet and (3) Principal, A.P.S.W. Gurukula School/Junior College for Girls, Suryapet) not to interfere with the possession of the petitioners of the subject land without recourse to law and without initiating necessary proceedings to acquire the subject land. Thereafter wards the impugned land acquisition proceedings were initiated.

(3.) In the affidavit filed in support of the writ petition the following contentions are raised by the petitioners: