JANGAMMA BAPU S/O. SAMMAIAH Vs. DIVISIONAL FOREST OFFICER, EAST DIVISION, KARIMNAGAR DISTRICT, KARIMNAGAR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The petitioners filed this writ petition for issuance of writ of Mandamus declaring the action of the respondents in not regularizing their occupation of the land in Sy.No.15, Mothukupalli Village and Sy.No.1, Domala Madaram Village, Malhar Rao Mandal, Karimnagar District, and threatening to evict them, as arbitrary and illegal.

(2.) There are 234 petitioners in the writ petition. As per the averments in the affidavit filed in support of the writ petition, all the petitioners belong to SC, ST and BC communities and are eking out their livelihood through agriculture. They assert that they are in occupation of Ac.600 in Sy.No.15 of Mothukupalli Village and Sy.No.1 of Domala Madaram Village in Malhar Rao Mandal for more than three and half decades. Their forefathers belong to the said two villages, which are forest villages. They abandoned the villages a few decades ago after an outbreak of cholera and migrated to Edlapalli, which is neighbouring village, and started cultivation in the above mentioned lands. The petitioners made representations dated 11.09.2006, 17.11.2006 and 11.12.2006 to the 2nd respondent -District Collector seeking to regularize their occupation of the land in the respective Survey numbers and to grant pattas in their favour.

(3.) The petitioners assert that in view of Circular No.13 -1/90 FP(1) dated 18.09.1990 issued by the Government of India, Ministry of Environment, Forests and Wildlife, declaring that the encroachers in the Government and Forest lands are entitled for regularization and no action need be taken to evict them, they are entitled to be granted pattas.