IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE, ANDHRA PRADESH AT HYDERABAD (Special Original Jurisdiction) TUESDAY, THE SECOND DAY OF DECEMBER TWO THOUSAND AND EIGHT PRESENT THE HON'BLE MR JUSTICE G.CHANDRAIAH WRIT PETITION NO : 24783 of 1999 Between: N. Siva Sankar Goud, S/o. late Sidda Mallanna Goud, R/o.Hologonda Village & Mandal, Kurnool District. ..... PETITIONER AND 1 The Revenue Divisional Officer, Adoni, Kurnool District. 2 The Mandal Revenue Officer, Halaharvi, Kurnool District. .....RESPONDENT(S) Petition under Article 226 of the constitution of India praying that in the circumstances stated in the Affidavit filed herein the High Court will be pleased to issue a writ of mandamus declaring the inaction of the respondents in not accepting the alternate land i.e., S.No.233 A1/C in lieu of S.No.233 A1/A1 B1 admeasuring 1 acre 94 cents situated at Gylym village of Holaharvi Mandal is illegal and arbitrary and consequently direct the respondents to accept the alternate land of 1 acre 94 cents out of 3 acres 13 cents in S.No.233 A1/C of same village and pass such other order or orders Counsel for the Petitioner: Counsel for the Respondents: GP FOR REVENUE The Court made the following : ORDER: This writ petition is filed by the petitioner seeking for a writ of mandamus declaring the inaction of the respondents in not accepting the alternate land i.e., Sy.No.233 A1/C in lieu of Sy.No.233 A1/A1 B1 admeasuring Ac.1.94 cents situated at Gulym village of Holaharvi Mandal as illegal and arbitrary, and consequently, direct the respondents to accept the alternate land of Ac.1.94 cents out of Ac.3.13 cents in Sy.No.233 A1/C of the same village. The case of the petitioner is that his late father by name Sidda Mallanna Goud was declared as surplus landholder under the Land Reforms Act. Pursuant to the said declaration he was asked to surrender excess land of Ac.6.11 cents vide C.C.No.1498 A.I.R. 1975 dated 26-07-1996 and at that time the petitioner’s father who was ailing, surrendered three survey numbers viz., 212/2A admeasuring 2.85 cents 233 A1/A1 B1admeasuring Ac.1.94 cents and 233 A1/A1 B5 admeasuring Ac.1.32 cents, totally admeasuring Ac.6.11 cents situated at Gulyam village of Halaharvi Mandal. This fact was not known to the petitioner. The petitioner’s late father during his life time about 20 to 25 years back sold and gifted small pieces of land i.e., 2 cents and 3 cents of land to various people in Sy.No.233 A1/A1 B1 on plain paper. The purchasers and beneficiaries did not insist for registration in view of their incapacity to pay the stamp duty though the price was normal. The said piece of land was surrendered inadvertently by the petitioner’s late father. Though the lands were taken possession by the respondents on paper in 1996, the same was not immediately assigned. The petitioner’s father expired in 1987. It is the further case of the petitioner that he came to know that small extents of the lands was assigned to different people. On coming to know this, the petitioner immediately approached the respondents and enlightened them of his difficulty and offered that he will surrender the same extent out of adjoining Sy.No.233 A1 C out of Ac.3.13 cents. The respondents agreed for the same. But due to political rivalry and their pressure, they have not passed any orders. It is his case that being a son of a declarant he feels that it is his moral duty to surrender unencumbered lands to avoid future litigation. Therefore, he filed application seeking for a writ of mandamus declaring the inaction of the respondents in not accepting the alternate land i.e., Sy.No.233 A1/C in lieu of Sy.No.223 A1/A1 B1 admeasuring Ac.1.94 cents situated at Gulyam village of Holaharvi Mandal as illegal and arbitrary. This Court, while admitting the writ petition, granted the order of status-quo as on 31-12-1999 in W.P.M.P.No.31199 of 1999. Admittedly, the case of the petitioner is that the petitioner’s father was declared as an excess holder of certain lands and the excess land was surrendered by the father of the petitioner and accepting the same the respondents have taken over the possession of the surrendered land in the year 1996 on paper and the same was allotted to the various beneficiaries and the father of the petitioner was expired in 1987. The alleged assignment was noticed by the petitioner at a later stage and his case was that though the possession of the surrendered land was taken over by the respondents on paper in 1996, the said land is in the possession of various persons to whom the father of the petitioner gifted. Therefore, the petitioner had offered to surrender the alternate land since the land situated in Sy.No.233 A1/C was surrendered by the father of the petitioner inadvertently without noticing the fact that the said land was given to various persons under a gift deed and other modes and they are in possession. The respondents had not filed any counter-affidavit. The case of the petitioner is that the petitioner came forward with a request to the respondents to accept the alternate land situated in Sy.No.233 A1/C in lieu of Sy.No.233 A1/A1 admeasuring Ac.1.94 cents situated in Gulyam village of Halaharvi Mandal and the respondents have not passed any order. Having regard to the averments made in the writ petition which are not controverted by the respondents by filing a counter affidavit and as this Court granted the order of status quo on 31-02-1999 with regard to the possession of the land, the writ petition is disposed of directing the respondents to pass appropriate orders on the representation of the petitioner within a period of two months from the date of receipt of a copy of this order. No order as to costs. __________________ 02nd December, 2008 SKM