THE HON’BLE SRI JUSTICE C.V.NAGARJUNA REDDY WRIT PETITION No.14068 of 2002 DATE: 09.02.2010 Between: S.Venkata Narayana …Petitioner and The District Collector, West Godavari and others …Respondents COUNSEL FOR THE PETITIONER : SRI CH.KRUPAVANTH THE HON’BLE SRI JUSTICE C.V.NAGARJUNA REDDY WRIT PETITION No.14068 of 2002 ORDER: This writ petition is filed for a mandamus to direct the respondents not to demolish the coconut trees situated over an extent of Ac.0.23 cents in R.S.No.557/2 of Gangadupalem Village, Elamanchili Mandal, West Godavari District. The petitioner claims to be the owner of Ac.0.23 cents of the above-mentioned land along with coconut trees standing thereon. The petitioner alleged that the respondents have constructed a bridge across a bank canal, which emanates at Siddantam Village and ends at Lakshmipalem Village passing through Gangadupalem Village. He further alleged that after completion of construction of the said bridge, the respondents are taking steps to form a road to provide accessibility to the said bridge and for this purpose, the subordinates of the respondents visited the petitioner’s land referred to above and started measuring the same on 27.07.2002. According to the petitioner, as per the markings, he will lose the land to an extent of Ac.0.10 cents and the coconut trees existing on the said land. The grievance of the petitioner is that though he approached respondents 2 and 3 on 27.07.2002 with a request not to remove the coconut trees and not to take possession of the land, the respondents were seeking to proceed to take possession of the land and remove the coconut trees. Though this writ petition is pending for the last eight years, no counter-affidavit has been filed. At the hearing, there is no representation for the respondents. As the averments contained in the affidavit remained uncontroverted, this Court is left with no option except to presume that the said averments are correct. The respondents being officers of the State are not entitled to dispossess the petitioner of his land and remove the coconut trees standing thereon without either his consent or acquiring the land in accordance with the provisions of the extant enactment. In this view of the matter, the writ petition is allowed. The respondents are restrained from dispossessing the petitioner of his land and removing the coconut or any other trees existing thereon, without following due process of law. C.V.NAGARJUNA REDDY, J 9th FEBRUARY, 2010. kvni