CHITRAM VENKAIAH Vs. GOVERNMENT OF ANDHRA PRADESH

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Petitioners seek a writ of Mandamus compelling the respondents 1 to 3 to allot either agricultural lands or house sites in the vicinity and proximity of the twin cities having the same value and utility as that of the lands which were taken away and acquired from them by the Govt. in the year 1964, if necessary, out of the lands available with them or by acquiring lands from others under any land acquisition proceedings.

(2.) Petitioners 1 to 6, the deceased husband of the 7th petitioner and the deceased father of the 8th petitioner are allottees of lands under the scheme known as 'The Shri Acharya Vinoba Bhave Sarvodaya Bhoo Yagna Scheme'. The allotment was effected in the year 1956 by distribution of 'Pampini Patrams' assigning the lands to these persons and the allottees were also put in physical possession of the allotted lands. Petitioners 1 and 2 were allotted Ac. 4-00 of land each and petitioners 3 to 6 and Pallati Chittari and Gaddam Balaiah were allotted Ac. 3-00 of land each. On such allotment, the beneficiaries made those lands cultivable by spending huge amounts. They have also sunk wells for converting these lands into cultivable lands.

(3.) Due to influx of population in and around Hyderabad, the Kanchanbagh locality, within which area the petitioners were assigned lands, became valuable for the purpose of house sites. Therefore, the Government of Andhra Pradesh prepared a scheme acquiring those lands under the Land Acquisition Act for the purpose of constructing Defence Metallurgical Research-Laboratory. Though the petitioners opposed such land acquisition proceedings acquiring the entire land situate in survey No. 41/1, the 1st respondent issued land acquisition proceedings by notification dated 30-1-1964 which were published on 3-2-1964 and the lands in question were taken possession on 28-2-1964. Pursuant to the issuance of land acquisition proceedings, compensation was also determined. The matter was referred to the Civil Court under Section 18 of the Land Acquisition Act (for short 'the Act') for enhancement of the compensation in O.P. No. 362 of 1965 in the Court of the Chief Judge, City Civil Court, Hyderabad.