INDERASAINA REDDY S Vs. SUPERINTENDENT OF POLICE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Petitioner claiming to be the General Secretary of Andhra Pradesh Congress Committee, approaches this Court invoking Article 226 of the Constitution of India and seeks a Writ of Mandamus directing the 1st respondent to initiate investigation against the 4th respondent pursuant to the petitioner's legal notice dated 26-9-2002, pertaining to the grant of the D-Form patta to the 4th respondent on 20-11-1978 vide File No. 1597/88 and to grant such other relief as it deems to be fit and proper in the circumstances of the case.

(2.) It is submitted by Sri Sripada Prabhakar, learned counsel for the petitioner that on 20-11-1978 the 3rd respondent- District Collector, Nellore District, assigned Ac. 4.95 cents of land by issuing D-Form patta to the 4th respondent Sri M. Venkaiah Naidu, who is presently holding the office of the President of Bharatiya Janata Party. According to the learned counsel, grant of D-Form patta on 20-11-1978 assigning Ac. 4.95 cents of land to the 4th respondent is contrary to the norms governing the conditions for issuance of D-Form patta. It is stated that as on the date of said assignment of land, the 4th respondent, who hails from an affluent family, was a Member of Legislative Assembly of Andhra Pradesh State representing Udayagiri Constituency. He further submits that on 20-11-1978 as many as 565-D-Form pattas were assigned to many individuals in Kasumuru Village, Venkatachalem Mandal, Nellore District, out of which 325 assignees belonged to Scheduled Caste, Scheduled Tribe and Backward Class communities and each individual was assigned less than one acre of land, whereas the 4th respondent was assigned Ac. 4.95 cents of land. The learned counsel stated that 'landless poor' as defined in the Government orders is a person who owns not more than one acre of wet land or 5 acres of dry land. The 4th respondent, who hails from an affluent family, was a Member of Legislative Assembly as on 20-11-1978, misused his position and got D-Form patta for Ac. 4.95 cents of land, though he is not entitled for such assignment as he does not come under the purview of "landless poor person" as defined in the Government orders, which act amounts to cheating the Government and public.

(3.) The learned counsel further submits that the petitioner came to know about the said assignment of land to the 4th respondent only on 16-8-2002, when a prominent English Daily Newspaper viz., Deccan Chronicle, published an article in front page under the caption "Venkaiah's lands in trouble" pointing out that the 4th respondent was assigned Ac. 4.95 cents of land on 20-11-1978. On the basis of this news item, the Opposition Parties in the State, particularly the leaders of the Congress Legislative Party Dr. Y.S. Rajasekhar Reddy as well as the All India Congress Committee Secretary Sri V. Hanumantha Rao and several others, demanded cancellation of the D-Form patta granted to the 4th respondent and also demanded CBI enquiry into the matter.