IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE, ANDHRA PRADESH AT HYDERABAD (Special Original Jurisdiction) THURSDAY, THE TWENTY EIGHTH DAY OF AUGUST TWO THOUSAND AND EIGHT PRESENT THE HON'BLE MR JUSTICE V.ESWARAIAH WRIT PETITION No.4960 of 2002 Between: Madivi Kannaiah, S/o. Podiyya, R/o. Gaddamadugu, Dummugudem Mandal, Khammam District. ..... PETITIONER AND 1 Division Forest Officer, Bhadrachalam (North) Division. 2 State of Andrha Pradesh, Rep. by its Secretary, Forest Department, Secretariat, Hyderabad. 3 State of Andrha Pradesh, Rep. by its Principal Secretary, Social Welfare, Secretariat, Hyderabad. 4 Project Officer, Integrated Tribal Development Agency (ITDA), Bhadrachalam, Khammam District. 5 Superintendent of Police, Khammam. .....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 to issue an order, direction or writ in the nature of Writ of Mandamus declaring that the act of the 1st Respondent in burining down the Gotti Koya Tribal hamlet of Gaddamadugu, Dummugudem Mandal, on 17.2.2002 is arbitrary and unlawful, and further directing the 3rd and 4th Respondents to forthwith take steps in terms of the law applicable to landless and homeless scheduled tribles in scheduled areas to resettle with adequate sources of livelihood the Gottikoya residents of Gaddamadugu, and pass Counsel for the Petitioner:MR.K.BALAGOPAL Counsel for the Respondent No.: GP FOR SOCIAL WELFARE The Court made the following: Form-NIC-OGS/WP{ANURADHA} THE HON'BLE SRI JUSTICE V.ESWARAIAH WRIT PETITION No.4960 of 2002 ORDER: The petitioner seeks to issue a Writ of Mandamus declaring the action of the 1st respondent-Divisional Forest Oﬃcer, Bhadrachalam in burning down the Gotti Koya tribal, H/o.Gaddamadugu, Dummugudem Mandal, as illegal and arbitrary, and to direct the respondents 3 and 4 to forthwith take steps in terms of the law applicable to the landless and homeless scheduled tribes in scheduled areas and to resettle with adequate sources of livelihood to Gotti Koya residents of Gaddamadugu. A counter has been ﬁled on behalf of respondents stating that Gotti Koya community is not a scheduled tribe in Andhra Pradesh and the petitioner is one of the trespasser in the Government Reserve Forest Land in Compartment No.13 of Reserve Forest, Kommanapalli for which a case was registered against the petitioner during the year 1999-2000 in Bhadrachalam Range under OR/49/99-2000 under the provisions of the Andhra Pradesh Forest Act, 1967 (hereinafter referred to as “the Act”) in Kallerukunta beat. It is stated that the petitioner has no locus standi to claim any relief. The petitioner and others illegally cleared the notiﬁed reserve forest constituting the oﬀence for violation of the provisions laid down under Sec.20 of the Act, and as such the so called hamlet is not a legal village in the revenue records and the petitioner is only a trespasser. It is further stated that when Gotti Koyas encroached upon the forest land, on 17.02.2002 the Range Staﬀ evicted Gotti Koyas. While evicting them, all due care has been taken. The other contention that the petitioner was in possession of the encroached area since 1970, has been denied. It is stated that under the National Forest Policy, 1988 under para-4.7 the shifting cultivation by propagating improved agricultural practices and by assuring alternative avenues of income by method of formation of Vanasamrakshana Samithi was ensured, and in view of alternative avenues of income by protection of forest by Vanasamrakshna Samithies, the petitioner is not entitled for any relief. The learned counsel appearing for the petitioner submits that the Parliament enacted the Act called “the Scheduled Tribes and other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, 2006 (No.2 of 2007) and as per the said Act, the forest rights of the individuals have to be settled in accordance with law, and all claims for recognition, restoration and vesting of rights, have to be received and until such claims are settled, the encroachers shall not be evicted. Having regard to the facts of the case, without going into the merits of the case, the Writ Petition is disposed of, keeping it open for the petitioner to make a claim, if not already made, within four weeks from today before the Grama Sabha/Authority to initiate the process for determining the nature of the rights of the petitioner under Sec.6 of the Scheduled Tribes and other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, 2006 (No.2 of 2007), and until the claim is settled, status quo, obtaining as on today, shall be maintained. No order as to costs. _____________________ V.ESWARAIAH,J Dated: 28.08.2008 Dsr .... REGISTRAR // TRUE COPY // SECTION OFFICER To 1 Division Forest Officer, Bhadrachalam (North) Division. 2 State of Andrha Pradesh, Rep. by its Secretary, Forest Department, Secretariat, Hyderabad. 3 State of Andrha Pradesh, Rep. by its Principal Secretary, Social Welfare, Secretariat, Hyderabad. 4 Project Officer, Integrated Tribal Development Agency (ITDA), Bhadrachalam, Khammam District. 5 Superintendent of Police, Khammam. 6 2. 2CCs to 7. 2CD copies