JAGANNATHA SWAMY VARU Vs. V VENUGOPALANAIDU

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The two Civil Miscellaneous Appeals have been preferred against the order of the learned Subordinate Judge, Rajam dated 26-12-1990 in I.A.No. 56 of 1990 in L.A.O.P.NO. 39 of 1990 - C.M.A.No. 562 of 1991 by the deity Sri Sri Sri Jagannadha Swamy varu at Palakonda, represented by its Executive Officer, the first respondent/claimant in the said I.A.; and C.M.A.No. 818 of 1991 by the petitioners/claimants in the said J.A. The parties will be referred to hereinafter as they were arrayed in the said LA.

(2.) The petitioners in the said I.A. were tenants in respect of Hecs. 8.83 of wet land belonging to the deity i.e., 1st respondent in the LA. In the acquisition proceedings in respect of the said land, they claim that they are entitled to a share in the compensation as statutory tenants in respect of the land acquired. On their claim under Section 30 of the Land Acquisition Act, 1894 ('the Act' for short), the Land Acquisition Officer referred the dispute to the decision of the Court and on thatreference the matter was taken up by the learned Subordinate Judge at Rajam and numbered as L.A.O.P.No. 39 of 1990. The petitioners filed I.A.No. 56 of 1990 under Order XXIX Rule 1 and under Sections 84(c) and 151 of the Code of Civil Procedure praying for temporary injunction pending the said L.A.O.P. restraining the first-respondent-deity from further executing proceedings including the withdrawal of the amount deposited towards the execution amount by the second respondent i.e., the State of Andhra Pradesh. After elaborately considering their claim, the learned Subordinate Judge was inclined to hold that the petitioners established, prima facie, that they were statutory tenants in respect of the acquired land as on the date of acquisition, that is, Section 4 notification. However, in view of certain observations in the judgment dated 6-8-1985 in Writ Petition No. 2778 of 1981 preferred by the petitioners before this Court, he was not inclined to straight-away order an injunction.

(3.) Writ Petition No. 2778 of 1981 was preferred by the petitioners themselves against the Collector, Srikakulam etc., for a writ of Certiorari or any other writ etc., for quashing the notification under Section 4(1) of the Act published in the Srikakulam District Gazette dated 18-2-1981 for acquisition of the said land of an extent of 8-83 hectares of Vadam village which is the subject matter of that L.A.O.P.NO. 39 of 1990. That land belongs to the deity Sri Sri Sri Jagannadha Swamy Varu at Palakonda, the first respondent. While dismissing that writ petition, Upendralal Waghray, J in his judgment dated 6-8-1985 observed as follows: