THE HON’BLE SRI JUSTICE RAMESH RANGANATHAN WRIT PETITION No.22305 of 2011 ORDER: The action of the respondents in dispossessing the petitioner from her assigned land i.e., Ac.0.92 cts in Sy. No.66/1Y2 of Jagapathi Nagaram village, Pathipadu Mandal, East Godavari District is under challenge in this writ petition. The original assignee late Sri Puppala Veeravenkata Satyanarayana is said to have been working as a coolly during his life time. It is the petitioner’s case that, consequent to the demise of her husband in the year 2005, she, her mother-in-law and two children are the legal heirs of the deceased assignee; eversince a patta was granted her husband was in possession and enjoyment of the land till his death; and, thereafter the petitioner has been in possession and enjoyment of the said land, and is eking out her livelihood therefrom. It is her grievance that the 3rd respondent, without intimation and notice to her, had surveyed the land in the third week of July, 2011 and, despite a representation submitted by her on 28.07.2011 requesting the respondent not to disturb her possession, the petitioners were being constantly threatened of being dispossessed from the lands in question. In the counter affidavit filed on behalf of the 3rd respondent, the fact that the land was assigned in favour of Sri P. Veeravenkata Satyanarayana is admitted. The 3rd respondent would state that some journalists made an application for allotment of house sites; on receipt of the application, an enquiry was conducted with regards Government lands, including the petitioner’s land; the enquiry revealed that, instead of the original assignee, Sri Ommi Tulasi Rao was in possession of the said land and was running a brick unit in the name of Vijayalakshmi Gal-G bricks; since Sri P.V. Satyanarayana i.e., the original assignee had alienated assigned lands, action was initiated for resumption of the lands in question; notices in Forms I & II were issued on 18.07.2011; and as the petitioner, the wife of the original assignee, was not residing in the village, and since no objections were received pursuant to the notice dated 18.7.2011, the land was resumed on 03.08.2011 and handed over to the Village Revenue Officer for the purpose of alienating the same as house sites for landless poor persons. This Court directed production of records. The Government Pleader for Revenue (Assignment) has produced the records today for perusal of this Court. She would state that a notice was issued to the petitioner on 18.07.2011; as no objections were received, the land was resumed on 03.08.2011; and, though the petitioner had submitted a representation on 28.07.2011, no reference was made therein either to the notice dated 18.07.2011 or to any objections which she ought to have submitted pursuant to the notice issued to her in Form I. The records produced before this Court disclose that, while the notice in Form I was sent to the original assignee on 18.07.2011, it was returned unserved on 22.07.2011 with the endorsement “addressee died”. Admittedly no steps were taken thereafter to have the notice served on the petitioner, the widow of the original assignee. Even after receipt of representation from her on 28.07.2011, no notice was issued to her in Form I before the land was resumed on 03.08.2011. It is evident, therefore, that the order of resumption was passed in contravention of Rule 3 of the Andhra Pradesh Assigned Lands (Prohibition of Transfers) Rules, 2007 read with Forms I and II thereof. Denial of a reasonable opportunity to the petitioner to show cause why the assignment should not be cancelled, and land being resumed, is also in violation of principles of natural justice. On being asked, Learned Government Pleader for Revenue (Assignment) has made available a copy of the notice dated 18.07.2011 to Sri K.V. Seshagiri Rao, Learned Counsel for the petitioner, who acknowledges receipt of the said notice. I consider it appropriate, in such circumstances, to set aside all proceedings taken after the show cause notice dated 18.07.2011, and permit the petitioner to submit objections to the show cause notice dated 18.07.2011 within fifteen days from today. The respondents shall not take any coercive steps to evict the petitioner from the land in question except till after the objections submitted by her is considered in accordance with law, and orders of resumption are passed and communicated to her. It is made clear that, in case no objections are filed to the said show cause notice dated 18.07.2011 within the aforesaid period of fifteen days, it is open to the respondents to proceed to pass orders in accordance with law and take action for resumption of the land thereafter. The Writ Petition stands disposed of accordingly. No costs. DATE: 14.09.2011 RAMESH RANGANATHAN,J MRKR