THE HON’BLE SRI JUSTICE RAMESH RANGANATHAN WRIT PETITION No.24212 of 2011 ORDER: The proceedings of the second respondent dated 16.08.2011, directing eviction of the petitioners herein, is under challenge in this Writ Petition as being arbitrary, illegal and in violation of principles of natural justice. A consequential direction is sought to the respondents not to evict the petitioners from their houses situated in T.S.No.145 of SS Ward, Burlepeta, 29th Ward, Vizianagaram Town and Municipality, Vizianagaram District. Facts, in brief, are that the petitioners were issued possession certificates by the Tahsildar, (under which statutory provision is not clear), pursuant to which they claim to have obtained loans from the Andhra Pradesh State Housing Corporation Limited, and to have constructed houses thereupon under the Indiramma Housing Scheme in the year 2009. While matters stood thus, the second respondent issued a notice, under Section 7 of the Andhra Pradesh Land Encroachment Act, 1905 (for short ‘the Act’), on 27.04.2011 calling upon the petitioners to show cause why they should not be evicted from the government lands which they had encroached upon. The petitioners claim to have submitted their explanation thereto on 08.05.2011 contending that the lands were inam lands; those inam lands belonged to Sri Manchukonda Sreeramulu; their forefathers worked under Sri Manchukonda Sreeramulu; they were allowed to erect thatched houses; they have been in possession of the houses since then; and they were paying house taxes regularly to the Municipality. It is the petitioners’ grievance that the second respondent, without considering their explanation, had passed the impugned proceedings dated 16.08.2011 directing their eviction from the lands in question. The impugned proceedings dated 16.08.2011 is issued under Section 6 of the Act requesting the petitioners to vacate the land within 15 days from the date of receipt of the notice. Under Section 10(1) of the Act, an appeal lies to the District Collector against any decision of the Tahsildar. Under Section 10(2) of the Act, pending disposal of the appeal, the District Collector has been empowered to suspend execution of the order appealed against. Whether the lands in question are government lands or inam lands; and whether the petitioners’ forefathers were the cultivating tenants of the said lands etc., are all questions of fact which can be examined in an appeal filed under Section 10(1) of the Act. Sri Aravala Rama Rao, Learned Counsel for the petitioners, would further assert that the contentions raised by the petitioners in the objections have not been dealt with in the impugned proceedings. All these contentions can also be raised in the appeal which the petitioners are entitled to prefer before the first respondent. The Writ Petition is, accordingly, disposed of. However, in the circumstances, without costs. RAMESH RANGANATHAN,J Date:27.08.2011 Note:Furnish copy 02.09.2011 Bo usd