NORI KAMESWARAMMA Vs. DISTRICT COLLECTOR WEST GODAVARI DISTRICT

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THIS Writ Petition has been filed by the petitioners seeking to declare that notwithstanding the transfer of the suit lands from Polavaram village to Pragadapalli village for administrative convenience, the laws applicable to the suit lands viz. , Survey nos. 239, 240, 241/1, 241/2, 242/1, 242/2, 243/1, 243/2, 244, 254/1, 291 and 292 are the laws which are applicable to Polavaram village and not the laws exclusively applicable to Scheduled Areas.

(2.) THE petitioners contended that they are having lands in Polavaram village ad measuring an extent of 80 acres in Paimaish no. 1 locally called as Rayudu Khandam in part of patta No. 6 and now surveyed as survey Nos. 239, 240, 241/1, 241/2, 242/1, 242/2, 243/1, 243/2, 244, 254/1, 291 and 292. The Governor General in exercise of powers conferred on him under Section 91 of the Government of India Act, 1935 passed 'the Madras partially Excluded Area (Cesser)Order, 1950 (Annexure-V) whereunder the area comprised in the village of Polavaram in polavaram Firka, excluding the four hamlets known as Itikalakota, Totagondi, Mamidigondi and Devaragondi adjoining that village' were deleted from the Scheduled Area with effect from 25-01 -1950. By reason of the aforesaid order of the Governor General, Polavaram village ceased to be in the Scheduled Area and became Plains Area governed by the ordinary Laws, which are in force in the adjacent Taluk of Eluru with effect from 25. 01. 1950. The Constitution of India came into force on 26. 01. 1950. After that the president of India is the only competent authority under Paragraph 6 in Part C of the v Schedule to the Constitution of India to declare the scheduled areas and to increase the area of any scheduled area or to delete any part of the area from the scheduled area by an Order passed by him in that behalf. The President of India passed 'the Scheduled areas (Part-A States) Order 1950' (Annexure-VI) whereunder the existing agencies of East Godavari, West Godavari and Visakhapatnam Agencies were declared as scheduled areas by order dated 26. 01. 1950 under Clause-2 in Paragraph 6 in Part-C of v-Schedule to the Constitution of India. The president of India passed 'the Madras scheduled Areas (Cesser) Order in 1951' (Annexure-VII) by which the President of India deleted the villages mentioned in the schedule to the said Order from the Visakhapatnam agency Area. The President of India also passed orders in respect of some other areas. The Polavaram village, was already excluded from the agency area w. e. f. 25. 01. 1950 by the Governor General. Therefore, the entire polavaram village excluding the four hamlets is the outside the scheduled area and are governed by the ordinary laws of the State. The then Tahsildar, Polavaram appears to have transferred the disputed lands and some other survey numbers in Polavaram village to Pragadapalli, which is included in the scheduled area for administrative convenience. The Tahsildar, Polavaram by any Administrative Act cannot transfer any area outside the scheduled area and include it in the scheduled area. Therefore, he requested to declare that notwithstanding the transfer of the suit land from Polavaram village to Pragadapalli village for administrative convenience, the laws applicable to the suit lands viz. , Survey Nos. 239, 240, 241/1, 241/2, 242/1, 242/2, 243/1, 243/2, 244, 254/1, 291 and 292 are the laws which are applicable to Polavaram village and not the laws exclusively applicable to scheduled areas.

(3.) THE learned counsel for the writ petitioners relied on the judgment of a Division bench of this Court in Bandaru Chinasurayya v. Union of India and others wherein the division Bench held as follows: