IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE, ANDHRA PRADESH AT HYDERABAD (Special Original Jurisdiction) TUESDAY, THE THIRTIETH DAY OF SEPTEMBER TWO THOUSAND AND EIGHT PRESENT THE HON'BLE MR JUSTICE L.NARASIMHA REDDY WRIT PETITION NO : 21595 of 2008 Between: 1 Kumbala Babu, S/o. Venkataiah, R/O. Juvvinattu Village, Vakadu Mandal, Nellore District. 2 Kumbabla Ravi, S/o. Venkatasubbaiah, R/O. Juvvinattu Village, Vakadu Mandal, Nellore District. 3 Kumbala Chiranjeevi, S/o. Kotaiah, R/o. Budidala Vagu, Vakadu Manal, Nellore District. 4 D. Kumar, S/o. Nageshwar Rao, R/O. Juvvinattu Village, Vakadu Mandal, Nellore District. 5 Kumbala Polaiah, S/o. Gunnaiah, R/O. Juvvinattu Village, Vakadu Mandal, Nellore District. ..... PETITIONERS AND 1 The Commissioner, Endowment Department, Boggulakunta, Hyderabad. 2 Assistant Commissioner, Endowment Department, Nellore. 3 T. Surender Reddy, S/o. Venkata Ramana Reddy, OF SRI Annapurneshwari Devi & Sri Kasi Veshveshwara Swami Temple, Juvvinattu Village, Vakadu Mandal, Nellore Dsitrict. .....RESPONDENTS 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, order or direction more particularly one in the nature of Writ of Mandamus to declare the alleged auction, dt. 28-06-2008 conducted by the 3rd respondent with the permission of the 1st and 2nd respondents for lease of Sri Kasiveshveshwara Swami Temple lands situated in Survey No. 69 and 73 of Juvvinattu Village, Vakadu Mandal, Nellore District and set aside the same as arbitrary, illegal, un-Constitutional and consequently direct the respondents to grant lease on the subject lands to the petitioners to their respective share as per the report of the Tahsildar, Vakadu Mandal, Nellore District. Counsel for the Petitioners:MR.J.LOKESH REDDY Counsel for the Respondent: GP FOR ENDOWMENTS The Court made the following : ORDER: The petitioners claim to be the tenants of various extents of land owned by Sri Kasi Veshweshwara Swamy Temple, Juvvinattu Village, Vakadu Mandal, Nellore District. It is stated that the petitioners are landless poor within the meaning of the expression employed under Section 82 of the A.P. Charitable and Hindu Religious Institutions and Endowments Act, 1987 (for short “the Act”). Their grievance is that the respondents herein have conducted the auction of leasehold rights on 28.06.2008, without terminating the lease in their favour and are trying to dispossess them. They contend that they were not aware of the auction and continue the lease in their favour and cannot alter their rights. Heard learned counsel for the petitioners and learned Government Pleader for Endowments. The petitioners plead that they are lessees, in respect of diﬀerent extents of land owned by the Temple. The full particulars thereof are not immediately before this Court. The fact, however, remains that irrespective of the nature and tenure of a tenancy, as regards the lands owned by the temples, the leases stand terminated by operation of Section 82 of the Act. A limited facility is created in favour of persons, who are declared as landless poor. The petitioners do not even claim that they have been declared as landless poor, as required under the relevant rules. The authorities have conducted auction of leasehold rights, way back in June 2008. The petitioners plead ignorance of the same. However, once the auction was conducted and new leases were granted in favour of highest bidders, no relief can be granted to the petitioners, at this stage. Even where the lessees have approached this Court, well in advance, the only relief granted to them was to enable them to participate in the auction, subject to certain conditions. The question of continuing the previous lease does not arise, once Section 82 of the Act has operated. Hence, the Writ Petition is dismissed. There shall be no order as to costs. ____________________ Dt.30.09.2008 L.NARASIMHA REDDY, J GJ