THE HON’BLE SRI JUSTICE R.SUBHASH REDDY WRIT PETITION No.5132 of 2008 ORDER: Although the matter is listed under the caption ‘interlocutory’, at the request of the learned counsel for both the parties, the Writ Petition itself is taken up for hearing and being disposed of by this order. Petitioner claims that she is the owner of vacant site admeasuring 100 sq.yards covered by D.No.13-2-19 situated at Dagguvari Street, Kovvur, Kovvur Mandal, West Godavari District. Originally, the said property was owned by Smt. R.Padmavathi, who mortgaged the same with Kovvur Cooperative Urban Bank Limited, Kovvur, West Godavari District and obtained certain amount as loan. In view of default committed by the loanee, the said Bank has taken steps to recover the amount and accordingly, the property, which was mortgaged, was put to public auction on 03.01.2007. The petitioner was a participant in the said auction and she became the highest bidder having paid an amount of Rs.1,30,000/- and the sale was confirmed in her favour on 05.02.2007 and she was issued sale certificate. When the said sale certificate was sent to the registering authority seeking to enter the same in Book No.1 as contemplated in the Registration Act, 1908, the same was returned on the ground that the land in question is an assigned one and it is prohibited for transfer. In this Writ Petition, it is the case of the petitioner that as much as she purchased the land in question in the open auction conducted in execution of the award obtained by the fourth respondent, it loses the characteristics of an assigned land. Learned counsel for the petitioner has relied on the order passed by this Court in the case of N.RAJA REDDY AND OTHERS v. SUB-REGISTRAR, SRIKALAHASTHI, CHITTOOR DISTRICT AND OTHERS[1]. In the counter-affidavit filed by the second respondent – Sub- Registrar of Assurances, Kovvur, West Godavari District, while admitting that the petitioner purchased the land in question in the open auction conducted by the fourth respondent, it is stated that in the records, it is noted as an assigned land as such the same is prohibited to be transferred under the provisions of the Andhra Pradesh Assigned Lands (Prohibition of Transfers) Act, 1977 (for short ‘the Act’). In N.RAJA REDDY’s case (1 supra), while interpreting Sections 3, 5 and 6 of the Act, the learned single Judge of this Court held that exemption provided under Section 6 of the Act continues to be available to the purchasers of the property sold by the Society/Financial Institution in the open auction. The learned single Judge also held that the assigned land, which was mortgaged, loses its characteristics once it is sold in the open auction. The said view of the learned single Judge was also confirmed by the Division Bench of this Court in the case of THE SUB-REGISTRAR, SRIKALAHASTI, CHITTOOR v. K.GURAVAIAH[2]. In view of aforesaid legal position, this Writ Petition is disposed of with the direction to the second respondent to make entries in the registers as freehold in respect of the land in question and to entertain the document presented for transfer in favour of the petitioner and consider the same without raising any objection that the land in question is an assigned one. No order as to costs. _______________________ R.SUBHASH REDDY, J 19th AUGUST, 2011. kvni [1] 2007(5) ALD 845 [2] 2009(2) ALD 250