PAVULURI RAMAIAH Vs. STATE OF ANDHRA PRADESH

JUDGEMENT

(1.) In this batch of writ petitions, all the petitioners/lessee-peasants, whose, main avocation is husbandry, when Section 82 of the Andhra Pradesh Charitable and Hindu Religious Institutions and Endowments, Act, 1987 (Act XXX of 1987), for short "the Act", hits them hard of their livelihood, are assailing its Constitutional validity on diverse grounds. It received the assent of the Governor on April 21, 1987 and the President of India on May 15, 1987, and was published in the Andhra Pradesh Gazette on May 23, 1987. The facts set out in Writ Petition No. 9461 of 1987 are sufficient to dispose of the points raised in these cases. Eight petitioners therein are lessees. An extent of Ac. 5-00; Ac. 1-50 cents, Ac. 1-40 cents Ac. 2-90 cents, Ac. 1-50 cents, Ac. 2-40 cents situated in Nagarajapally village were taken lease of by the petitioners 1 to 3 respsctively, Ac. 4-00, Ac. 3-01 cent. Ac. 4-90 cents Ac. 2-30 cents, Ac. 1-50 cents situated in Konedena Village were taken lease of by the petitioners 3 to 8 respectively from the Executive Officer, Sri Lakshminarasimha Swamy Vari Devasthanam, Mangalagiri in Guntur District, the third respondent. They have been in possession for over 30 to 70 years as cultivating tenants, except the second petitioner who has been in possession for over eleven years. They received the notices dated July 9/10, 1987, directing to vacate possession of the demised lands by operation of Section 82 of the Act. They resisted in their reply that they are governed by the Andhra Pradesh (Andhra Area) Tenancy Act (Act XVIII of 1956) as amended in Act No XXXIX of 1974, (for short, "the Tenancy Act"). Their plank in the writ petition is that Section 82 is unconstitutional, illegal and arbitrary. Similar are the facts in the rest of the writ petitions, the details of which are redundant to count. Writ Petition Nos. 9382, 9603, 9607, 9610, of 1987 and 584, 13826 and 13882 of 1988, the details of the extent of the leasehold land have not been mentioned. In 54 writ petitions the extent of lease-hold lands vary between Ac. 1-00 to Ac. 10-00. In Writ Petition No. 7384/88 the extent is 7 cents. In nine writ petitions, the extent of the lands vary between Ac. 15-00 to Ac. 10-00. In twenty writ petitions it varies between Ac. 17-00 to Ac. 35-00. In Writ Petition No 9233 of 1987, the lease-hold lands are Ac. 91-31 1/2 cents; and in Writ Petition No 9782 of 1987, Ac. 68-44 cents, in Writ Petition No 1938 of 1988, Ac. 57-40 cents; in Writ Petition No. 4288 of 1988, Ac. 85-10 cents. The total extent of leasehold wet lands in the entire State belonging to the various charitable or religious institutions or endowments are Ac. 81, 878-02 1/2 cents wet lands and dry lands are Ac. 2,41 419-78 2/3 cents. The number of tenants are 39,927. Out of that, Ac. 925-23 cents of wet land and Ac. 3,120-65 cents of dry land have been sold out. The balance available wet land is Ac. 80,956-79 1/2 cents and Ac. 2,39,299 2/3 cents of dry land to these institutions and endowments.

(2.) The Act is sequel to the report submitted by Justice Chella Kondaiah, Chief Justice (Retired) of this Court. The State appointed the Commission in G O Ms No. 729 dated April 30, 1984, to review the present system of management of the institutions and endowments and their properties, the need to protect them from tenancy and other laws, the measures to be taken to protect the interests of the institutions, etc. In Part VI of the Report in paragraph 1. 18. 1 at Page 72 of the Report, it is stated that all concerned who are interested in the religious or charitable institutions have stated that the temple authorities are facing innumerable difficulties in the management of the landed properties of the institutions, the income is very meagre, not worth-mentioning, and in some cases it is nil, although the institution owns large extent of lands. Reason thereof is the provisions of the Tenancy Act, attitude of the persons in possession and enjoyment for several years, the lands belonging to these institutions are

(3.) The Andhra Pradesh (Telangana Area) Tenancy and Agricultural Lands Act, 1950, (Act No XXI of 1950) has its own history behind it. It has come into vogue as a result of the heroic fight by the agricultural class organised by the democratic force to give the security of the tenure to the tillers of the soil. It determines the family holdings. The cultivator has been given protected tenancy. The maximum rent has been determined under Secs. 11 and 12 and the liability to pay the rent at a rate not exceeding the one specified in Sec. 11 was given under Sec. 13. Sec. 14 prohibits to receive rent in terms of labour. Sec. 17 provides determination of the reasonable rent. Sec. 18 grants suspension or remission of the rent. Sec. 19 gives with non obstante clause protection from termination of the leases. Sec. 20 creates bar of eviction from dwelling houses. Sec. 27 accords relief against illegal termination of tenancies. Sec. 28 provides relief of termination of tenancy for nonpayment. Sec. 32 provides the procedure for taking possession. Chapter IV in Sec. 34 declares who are the protected tenants Sec. 36 gives power to him to recover possession. Sec. 37 declares, though a certain class, other than those governed by Sec. 34, to be protected tenants. Sec. 37-A also equally serves the same purpose. Sec. 38 gives right to the protected tenant to purchase the land in the manner prescribed thereunder. Sec. 38-A provides procedure for payment of the reasonable price. Sec. 38-B provides procedure to the landlord to agree to relinquish his rights in favour of the protected tenant. Minimum holdings in cases of sale is adumbrated in Sec. 38-C. Sec. 38-D provides procedure when the landlord intends to sell the land to a protected tenant and Sec. 38-E confers ownership of the land held by the protected tenant and transfer thereof and Sec. 40 declares those rights to be heritable. Sec. 44 gives right to the landlord to terminate the protected tenancy, etc.