IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE, ANDHRA PRADESH AT HYDERABAD (Special Original Jurisdiction) PRESENT: THE HON’BLE MR. JUSTICE C.V.NAGARJUNA REDDY WEDNESDAY, THE TWENTY FOURTH DAY OF NOVEMBER, TWO THOUSAND AND TEN WRIT PETITION No.19731 of 2010 Between: Koruprolu Appalanaidu and others. … Petitioners And A.P. State, reptd., by District Collector, Visakhapatnam District, Visakhapatnam and others. … Respondents Counsel for the petitioners: Sri K.S.R.Murthy. Counsel for the respondents: AGP for Revenue for R.1 & R.2. Sri K.Subrahmanyam for R.3 to R.6. This Court made the following: ORDER:- At the admission stage, the Writ Petition is taken up for hearing and disposal, with the consent of the learned counsel for the parties. This Writ Petition is filed for a Mandamus to declare the action of respondent No.1 in seeking to evict the petitioners from the land admeasuring Ac.5.00 cents comprised in survey No.168-E/2 of Dopperla village in erstwhile Yellamanchili Taluk, Atchutapuram Mandal, as illegal and arbitrary. The petitioners pleaded that an extent of Ac.5.00 cents in Survey No.168-E/2 was purchased by them from one Kothapalli Pydayya for valuable consideration. When attempts were made to dispossess them from the said land, they have filed O.S.No.92 of 1997 against the State, represented by the District Collector, and the Mandal Revenue Officer, in the Court of the Principal Junior Civil Judge’s Court, Yellamanchili. While declaring that the petitioners were in possession and have perfected their title to the said land, the trial Court has, however, dismissed the said suit on technical grounds. The immediate cause for filing the present Writ Petition is the alleged attempt on the part of respondent No.2 in seeking to dispossess the petitioners from the land in question. Respondent No.2 and respondents 3 to 6 have filed their respective counter-affidavits. Respondents 3 to 6 are the legal heirs of Kothapalli Pydayya, who is the vendor of the petitioners. It is their pleaded case that Pydayya was the assignee, who sold the property to the petitioners in violation of the provisions of the A.P. Assigned Lands (Prohibition of Transfers) Act, 1977 (for short “the Act”); that when respondents 3 to 6 approached respondent No.2, a notice was issued under the provisions of the Act to the petitioners for resumption of the land; and that no further steps have been taken by respondent No.2 for resumption of the land. Anticipating that further steps will be taken in this regard by respondent No.2, the petitioners have filed the present Writ Petition. In the counter-affidavit filed by respondent No.2 it is, inter alia, stated that the land admeasuring Ac.5.00 cents in Survey No.168/2E2 was assigned to Kothapalli Pydayya; that the petitioners have purchased the said land by deliberately mentioning survey No.168/E2 in order to escape any action under the provisions of the Act; and that so far no action is initiated for resumption of the said land. It is further stated that respondent No.2 will take necessary action in accordance with law against the petitioners and respondents 3 to 6 for resumption of the land for violation of the provisions of the Act and the conditions of assignment. After hearing the learned counsel for the parties, I am of the opinion that if is found that the petitioners are in occupation of the assigned land in violation of the provisions of the Act, respondent No.2 is entitled to initiate action against them under the provisions of the Act. So long as such action is not initiated and an order is passed, the petitioners cannot be dispossessed from the lands in question. The Writ Petition is accordingly disposed of with liberty to respondent No.2 to initiate action for resumption of the land under the provisions of the Act, after due notices to the petitioners and respondents 3 to 6. As a sequel to disposal of the Writ Petition, WPMP No.25003 of 2010 and WVMP No.4440 of 2010 are disposed of as infructuous. -------------------------------------- C.V.NAGARJUNA REDDY,J Date:24-11-2010 Note: Issue CC in a week. (BO) MNR