GOTTIPULLA VENKATA APPARAO Vs. SPECIAL DEPUTY COLLECTOR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) I have dictated the judgment in the open court on 19-7-1995. Since neither the counsel for the petitioners nor the respondents were present and since they filed a letter for being mentioned I have posted the matter for being mentioned as I have not signed the judgement after it is transcribed. On 1-8-1995 the counsel for the petitioners as well as the counsel for the respondents appeared before the court. The respondents' counsel also produced the records. The brief facts of the case are as follows:

(2.) These two writ petitions are disposed of by a common judgement. The petitioners are purchasers of land situated in tribal area. In 1975, proceedings were initiated against them under the Andhra Pradesh (Scheduled Area) Land Transfer Regulations Act, 1959 (for short 'the Act') on the ground that the petitioners who are not tribals, purchased the properties from the tribals and therefore, the sale in their favour is void and hit by the provisions of the Regulations.

(3.) After hearing the petitioners' predecessors in title and also the respondents' predecessors in title the special Deputy Collector held that the sale transaction in favour of the petitioners' predecessors in title and the predecessors of the respondents, are not void. The matter was disposed of some time in May, 1975. After five years, the respondents filed an appeal before the Collector, Khammam viz. Agent to the Government. The Agent to the Government issued a notice to the petitioners. The petitioners challenged the notice issued by the Agent to the Government of Andhra Pradesh by way of a Writ Petition No-7020/1979. The writ petition was allowed holding that