KONDAYYA Vs. COLLECTOR W G DIST

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Over the last few decades, the Government has been assigning Government lands to landless poor persons, with the object of improving their economic lot. Certain Rules have been framed by the Government from time to time, governing such assignment. It is unnecessary for the present purposes to refer to them in any detail, except to mention that most often these Rules and the pattas granted thereunder contained a condition of nonalienability. While the assigned land was heritable, it was made non- transferable. The idea was to ensure that the assignees continue to derive benefits from the lands assigned to them. If the money-lenders or other ryots in the village were allowed to take advantage of the helplessness and misery of these landless poor persons, it was assumed, they would take away the land, thus reducing the assignees to their original status of landless poor. But, the Government appears to have found in practice that the said condition of non-alenability has been honoured more in breach. A. large extent of land assigned to the landless poor found its way into possession of better placed ryots and money lenders, thus defeatine the very object behind the assignment which was almost universally free. When action was taken for resuming or restoring the land to the original assignees the transferees raised several legal objections, delaying and defeating those efforts. Accordingly, it appears, the Legislature of Andhra Prodesh found it advisable to make a law, prohibiting transfer of such assigned lands. In the first instance, an Ordiance called the "Andhra Pradesh Assigned Lands (Prohibition of Transfers) Ordinance" was issued in 1977, which was later replaced by an Act, called "Andhra Pradesh Assiened Lands (Prohibition of Transfers) Act." being Act No. 9 of 1977. The statement of objects and reasons appended to the Bill disclose the reasons behind, and the objections sought to be achieved by, the enactment. It reads :

(2.) A brief reference to the provisions of the enactment would be appropriate at this stage. The expression 'assigned lands' is defined by clause (1) in section 2 of the Act. It means 'lands assigned by the Government to the landless poor persons under the rules for the time being in force, subject to the condition of non-alienation and includes a land allotted or transferred to landless poor persons under the relevant law for the time being in force relating to land ceilings ; and the word 'assigned' shall be construed accordingly". However, mortgages in favour of certain institutions are exempted.

(3.) The expression "landless poor person" is defined by clause (3). It means'a person who owns an extent of land not more than 1.011715 hectares (two and half acres) of wet land, or 2.023430 hectares (five acres) of dry land or such other extent of land as has been or may be specified by the Government in this behalf from time to time and who has no other means of livelihood'. The explanation to this clause says that one-acre of wet land shall be treated as equivalent to 2 acres ot dry land. The expression 'transfer has been defined by clause (6), to mean 'any sale, gift, exchange mortagage with or without possession, lease or any other transation with assigned lands, not being a testamentary disposition and includes a charge on such property or a contract relating to assigned lands in respect of such sale, gift, exchange, mortgage, lease or other transaction'.