ANDHRA PRADESH STATE ROAD TRANSPORT CORPORATION EM Vs. GOVERNMENT OF ANDHRA PRADESH, REP BY ITS SECRETARY

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The A.P.S.R.T.C. Employees Co-operative Building Society, Kurnool, represented by its Secretary filed the present Writ Petition against the respondents praying for issuance of a writ, order or direction more particularly one in the nature of writ of mandamus declaring the action of the 2nd respondent in issuing the endorsement L.P.CMP/27/S.A./97 dated 18-2-1997 proposing to auction the land in Sy.No.473 and 460 of Dinnedevrapadu village which was allotted to the petitioner-society as house sites as illegal, arbitrary, violative of principles of natural justice, null and void and consequently direct the respondents to assign the land admeasuring Acs.24-50 cents out of S.No.396 which is demarcated as Sy.No.473 after its Sub-Division and Acs.5-55 cents in Sy.No.460 of Dinnedevarapadu village, Kurnool District in favour of the individual members-allottees of the petitioner-society and to pass such other suitable orders.

(2.) Sri T.Bali Reddy, learned Senior Counsel representing the petitioner- society advanced submissions at length tracing the events commencing from Rc.A11.6174/72 dated 3-4-1972 till date and would contend that in the light of the facts and circumstances of the case it is a clear case where the doctrine of promissory estoppel is applicable to the facts of the case and hence the Government cannot go back on the proposals to allot these lands in favour of the petitioner-society and the members of the said society and hence the proposed auction contrary to the promise already made is arbitrary, illegal and also unconstitutional being violative of Art. 21 of the Constitution of India.

(3.) The learned Senior Counsel also had drawn the attention of this Court to proceedings Rc.No.B-6/1052/93 D-1, dated 7-9-1994, Rc.(E1)/1052/93, dated 29-3-2000, Rc.No.E(1)/1052/93, dated 13-7-2000 and Rc.No.E1/2682/2003 dated 1-9- 2003 and the grounds raised in the affidavit filed in support of the Writ Petition and also the stand taken by the respondents in the counter affidavit. The learned Senior Counsel would conclude that in the facts and circumstances of the case, the proposed auction is not justified and the Government may have to keep up the promise and finalise the allotments in favour of the petitioner- society and its members.