NATTI KONDALA RAO Vs. STATE OF ANDHRA PRADESH

JUDGEMENT

(1.) At the interlocutory stage, the writ petition is taken up for hearing and disposal with the consent of the learned Counsel for the parties. This writ petition is filed for a mandamus to set aside the order vide No.G.1/SW/73/2006, dated 27.4.2007, of respondent No.2 and also the declaration vide Roc.No.73/2007/GI, dated 10.7.2007, issued under Section 6 of the Land Acquisition Act, 1894 (for short 'the Act').

(2.) The petitioners are owners of land admeasuring Acs.2-00 cent in Sy.No.261/ 2A2 of Kunchanapalli Village. The said land was notified for acquisition for providing house sites to the people belonging to Scheduled Caste and Backward Class sections. A notification under Section 4(1) of the Act, dated 13.2.2007, was published on 22.2.2007 in the newspapers. Curiously, even before publication of the said notification, respondent No.3 issued notice under Section 5A of the Act, published on 15.2.2007, fixing the date of personal hearing on 2.3.2007. It is the pleaded case of the petitioners that as they were away from the village they came to know about the initiation of land acquisition proceedings through one of the villagers and that, immediately thereafter, they have sent their objections on 20.3.2007. However, without hearing the petitioners in the enquiry under Section 5A of the Act, respondent No.2 has passed the impugned order purporting to reject the petitioners' objections.

(3.) In the counter-affidavit filed by the respondents, the fact that the notice under Section 5A of the Act preceded the publication of notification under Section 4(1) of the Act is not denied. It is, however, submitted that the notification issued under Section 4(1) of the Act was approved on 13.2.2007 and published on 22.2.2007, by which time, the notice under Section 5A of the Act was issued on 15.2.2007.