THE HONOURABLE SRI JUSTICE C.V. RAMULU WRIT PETITION No.12794 OF 2008 DATED: 24.09.2009 Between: Sammidi Veera Reddy and others .. Petitioners And The Special Officer & Competent Authority, Urban Land Ceiling, Hyderabad, and others. .. Respondents ORDER: This writ petition is filed seeking a Mandamus declaring the proceedings dated 16.08.2005 and 22.08.2005, in C.C.Nos.H2/10689, 10695 to 10697, 10699 & 10700/76, issued by the 1st respondent- Special Officer and Competent Authority, Urban Land Ceiling, Hyderabad, under Sections 8 (1) and 8 (4) of the Urban Land (Ceiling & Regulation) Act, 1976, respectively, in respect of the land to an extent of Ac.5.00 in Sy.No.105 of Kondapur Village, Serilingampally Mandal, Ranga Reddy District, as illegal, arbitrary, contrary to the mandatory provisions of the said Act and violative of principles of natural justice. Petitioners claim to have purchased the land to a total extent of Ac.5.00 in Sy.No.105, which was subsequently subdivided as Sy.No.105/A, situated at Kondapur Village, Serilingampally Mandal, Ranga Reddy District, (hereinafter referred to as ‘the subject land’), under three separate sale deeds dated 05.08.2002, 26.08.2002 and 19.11.2002 respectively, for valid consideration, from one K. Vijaya Lakshmi, who got the same under a gift deed dated 22.09.1997 from one Kishore Babu, who purchased the same in the year 1973 from the original owners and possessors, for valid consideration. Petitioners also claim that their names were entered in the revenue records pertaining to the subject land and they have also constructed a compound wall around the same, after obtaining due permission from the municipal authorities. It is the case of the petitioners that they came to know that the original owners filed a declaration under Section 6 (1) of the Urban Land (Ceiling and Regulation) Act, 1976 (for short ‘the Act’), before the 1st respondent- Special Officer and Competent Authority, Urban Land Ceiling, Hyderabad, with regard to the land owned by them and, in the said declaration, they have wrongly included the subject land sold in the year 1973 and, basing on the same, draft statement under Section 8(1) of the Act was issued on 16.08.2005 and consequently final order under Section 8(4) of the Act was passed on 22.08.2005, confirming the draft statement and declaring that the declarants were holding the subject land in excess of the ceiling limit. Thereupon, the petitioners filed an appeal, in Appeal No.HYBD/ULC/70/2005, under Section 33 of the Act, before the 2nd respondent- Commissioner of Appeals, Office of the Chief Commissioner, Land Administration, Government of Andhra Pradesh, Hyderabad, but however, in view of the adoption of Urban Land (Ceiling and Regulation) Repeal Act, 1999, in the state of Andhra Pradesh, the said appeal stood abated, and in the meanwhile the 1st respondent proceeded to issue notices under Sections 10 (1), 10 (3), 10 (5) and 10 (6) of the Act with regard to the subject land. It is the complaint of the petitioners that though they are the purchasers of the subject land and are in possession of the same, no notices or proceedings under the various provisions of the Act, referred to above, have been issued to them and, therefore, they contend that the entire proceedings initiated under the Act with regard to the subject land are vitiated. Admittedly, the draft statement dated 16.08.2005 and final order dated 22.08.2005 have not been issued to the petitioners, in spite of they being the purchasers of the subject land and are in possession of the same. It is also to be noted that even the consequential proceedings under Sections 10 (1), 10 (3), 10 (5) and 10 (6) of the Act that were issued during the pendency of the appeal filed by the petitioners before the 2nd respondent have not been issued to the petitioners. Therefore, I am of the opinion that the impugned proceedings, so far as the subject land are concerned, are issued in gross violation of the principles of natural justice and also contrary to the provisions of the Act, and on that ground alone, they are liable to be set aside. Accordingly, the impugned proceedings dated 16.08.2005 and 22.08.2005 and the consequential proceedings thereto, so far as the subject land i.e. Ac.5.00 in Sy.No.105/A of Kondapur Village, Serilingampally Mandal, Ranga Reddy District, are concerned, are set aside and the writ petition is allowed. No order as to costs. _________________ JUSTICE C.V. RAMULU 24th September, 2009. IBL