G V N BHARATHAN Vs. UNION OF INDIA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The petitioners, 72 in number, have filed this writ petition to issue a writ of mandamus declaring the action of the Government in not selling the Kaladera Government Colony Houses/quarters to the petitioners on hire purchase system as illegal, arbitrary and unconstitutional and to direct the Government to sell said houses to the petitioners on hire purchase system in terms of G.O.Ms.No.130 Housing, dated 23-12-1974.

(2.) Sri S.Ramachandra Rao, learned Senior counsel appearing for the petitioners submits that the quarters at Kaladera Government Colony, Hyderabad, were constructed by the A.P. Housing Board, way back in the year 1960 and they were later transferred to the State Government.All the said quarters were constructed by the A.P.Housing Board initially under the rental housing scheme in the same manner as that of those quarters, which were constructed in Yakutpura Colony. The petitioners have been allotted the said houses on rental basis, and some of them also retired from service and some of them are on the verge of retiring. They have made a representation on 01-06-1992 to the authorities to permit them to buy the said quarters at reasonable rate, since they are staying in those quarters for a long time. It is stated that earlier 88 quarters built at Yakutpura and Domalguda under the same scheme were sold to the Government employees, who were in occupation thereof as tenants, on hire purchase basis vide G.O.Ms.No.130, dated 23-12-1974. The case of the petitioners is also similar to the said case and they fulfill all the conditions stipulated in the said G.O.Ms.No.130, dated 23-12-1974 and they are entitled for consideration on the same basis. But, despite all these, the Government is not willing to sell the said quarters to them and therefore, they challenge action of the Government on the ground of it being discriminatory and illegal.

(3.) On the other hand, the learned Advocate General submits that the orders of the Government in G.O.Ms.No.130, dated 23-12-1974, have no application to the facts of the case on hand and it cannot be said that the petitioners are similarly situated from that of those employees against whose favour certain quarters of the A.P. Housing Board were transferred, subject to certain conditions. It is stated that the quarters covered in G.O.Ms.No.130, dated 23-12-1974, belong to the A.P. Housing Board, whereas all the quarters of Kaladera Government Colony, belong to the Government. A perusal of the orders of the Government in G.O.Ms.No.164, dated 02-08-1962, makes it clear that the said quarters of Kaladera Government Colony, were constructed by the A.P. Housing Board at the request of the Government and the funds financed by the Government. The A.P. Housing Board has putforth two alternative conditions, which are not acceptable to the Government, and it is open for the Government to take over the entire estate consisting of 184 flats constructed under the Rental Housing Scheme together with the loan liability thereon and that the unspent balance of the loan of Rs.22-57 lakhs so far drawn by the A.P. Housing Board under the Rental Housing Scheme will be refunded to Government without interest. The Government decided to take over from the A.P. Housing Board the entire estate consisting of 184 flats in Kaladera and Panjagutta areas and after construction of all the quarters is completed in all respects by the A.P.Housing Board, the ownership of these quarters will vest with the Government and the Public Works Department and the A.P.Housing Board is only the executing agency in respect of the said quarters. Accordingly, the Government directed that the said quarters be transferred to the Chief Engineer (Buildings) P.W. Department for maintenance etc. The allotment of the quarters to the State Government employees will be made by the controller of Accommodation under the usual rules. The Government has decided that the unspent balance out of the loan of Rs.22-57 lakhs so far drawn by the A.P.Housing Board under the Scheme be refunded to the Government without interest.Thus, there is no dispute that all the quarters of Kaladera Government Colony, belong to the Government only and the A.P.Housing Board is not the owner of the said quaraters.