THE HON’BLE SRI JUSTICE SANJAY KUMAR WRIT PETITION NO.12873 OF 2009 DATED 7TH JULY, 2011 BETWEEN Immidisetti Satyanarayana and others. …Petitioners And The District Collector & Chairman, District Water Management Agency, Khammam, Khammam District and others. …Respondents THE HON’BLE SRI JUSTICE SANJAY KUMAR WRIT PETITION NO.12873 OF 2009 ORDER: The Chairmen of Thallampadu-I Water Shed Committee and Thallampadu-II Water Shed Committee, Khammam Rural Mandal, along with the Secretary of Thallampadu-II Water Shed Committee, Khammam Rural Mandal, the petitioners herein, assail the order dated 18.06.2009 passed by the District Collector, Khammam, sanctioning recovery of specified amounts from them under the Revenue Recovery Act. It is their case that no prior notice was issued to them in this regard and no enquiry preceded the impugned order. This Court, by order dated 30.06.2009, suspended the impugned order. WVMP No.4422 of 2009 is filed by the respondent authorities to vacate the same. With the consent of the learned counsel, the main writ petition is taken up for disposal. The material papers filed by the respondents along with their counter include an enquiry report dated 07.03.2009 submitted by the Project Director, District Water Management Agency (DWMA), Khammam, wherein mention is made of explanations submitted by the Chairmen of the two Committees. The learned Government Pleader for Panchayat Raj was accordingly directed to produce the record pertaining to this enquiry to ascertain whether the petitioners were put on notice and whether any enquiry was instituted into the matter prior to the passing of the impugned order. Today, the record is produced for the perusal of the Court and the learned Government Pleader, having gone through the same, fairly conceded that there is no indication of any regular enquiry having been instituted in the matter. The record reflects that various statements were recorded by the Project Director, DWMA, Khammam, and in that context, the Chairmen of the two Water Shed Committees also made their statements. Except for this, there is no ‘written explanation’ submitted by them as recorded in the enquiry report dated 07.03.2009. The record also does not reflect that any notice was ever issued to the petitioners calling upon them to explain as to why the sums in question should not be recovered from them. There is therefore clear and flagrant violation of the principles of natural justice. The petitioners could not have been visited with financial liability without affording them an adequate opportunity of defending themselves. In that view of the matter, the impugned order dated 18.06.2009 is unsustainable in law and is accordingly set aside. The Writ Petition is allowed. Miscellaneous petitions shall stand dismissed in the light of this final order. Parties shall bear their own costs. ____________________ SANJAY KUMAR, J. 7TH JULY, 2011. VGSR/PGS