THE HON’BLE SRI JUSTICE N.V. RAMANA WRIT PETITION No.20908 of 2004 ORDER: This writ petition is filed seeking to declare the action of the respondents in issuing the demolition notices dated 22.09.2004 to the petitioners in respect of their houses without initiating proceedings under the Land Acquisition Act, 1894 (for short ‘the Act’) and without paying compensation as per the Act as arbitrary and illegal, and consequently to direct the respondents to stop demolition. The petitioners, who are ten in number, are the owners and possessors of the houses bearing Nos.3-20, 3-17, 1-39, 1-14, 7-14/1, 3-44, 1-76, 1-51, 2-7 and 7-15, respectively, situated at Jagir Kondapur Village, Medipally Mandal, Karimnagar District. Since the construction, they have been in possession and enjoyment of the said houses i.e., for the last more than thirty years. While so, the petitioners state that the respondents with a view to widen the road in front of their houses issued notices dated 22.09.2004 to them to co-operate for demolition of houses. The grievance of the petitioners is that the respondent Gram Panchayat issued notices to them without following the due process of law i.e., without initiating proceedings under the Act and paying them compensation. This Court, while admitting the writ petition on 11.11.2004, by way of interim orders in W.P.M.P.No.27392 of 2004, directed the respondents not to demolish the petitioners’ houses without following due procedure under the Act. The respondents have not filed counter-affidavit so far and even today, none appeared for the respondents. If the respondents intend to widen the road by demolishing some portions of the houses of the petitioners, they must follow due process of law contemplated under the Act and they cannot straight away issue demolition notices, which is against the settled principle of law. In the circumstances, instead of keeping the writ petition pending, it would suffice to dispose of the same with a direction to the respondents to follow due process of law contemplated under the Act and to pay compensation as per the Act. With the above directions, the Writ Petition is disposed of. No order as to costs. _______________________ N.V. RAMANA, J 03rd June, 2010 GHN