IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE, ANDHRA PRADESH AT HYDERABAD (Special Original Jurisdiction) PRESENT THE HON’BLE SRI JUSTICE C.V. NAGARJUNA REDDY WRIT PETITION NO.8534 OF 2002 Dt.30.12.2009 Between: Pushadapu Niranjanrao … Petitioner And The District Collector Krishna District Machilipatnam … Respondents and others THE HON’BLE SRI JUSTICE C.V. NAGARJUNA REDDY WRIT PETITION NO.8534 OF 2002 ORDER: This Writ Petition is filed for issue of Prohibition from transferring the communal land of Ac.4.15 cents comprised in R.S. Nos.236, 237, 239 and 243 of Bhavadevarapally Village, Krishna District, by way of assignment or lease or otherwise in favour of respondent No.4. Heard Sri M.R.K. Chakravarthy, learned Counsel for the petitioner. No one appeared for the respondents. The petitioner claims to be an agriculturist owing land in R.S. No.207 of the above said Village. He averred that there is a donka of about two kilometers (2 Kms) length to an extent of Ac.1.50 cents, Ac.0.79 cents, Ac.0.75 cents and Ac.1.13 cents in R.S. Nos.236, 237, 239 and 243 respectively situated adjacent to the petitioner’s land. He further averred that at the instance of respondent No.4, who is an ex- serviceman, the official respondents are seeking to assign or lease the above mentioned land to the said respondent. The petitioner pleaded that since the above mentioned land forms part of public pathway, its assignment is detrimental to the community interests. A counter affidavit is filed by the District Collector wherein it has been inter alia averred that only a part of the land in R.S.Nos.236 and 239 is being used for ingress and egress only during transplantation and harvesting seasons by agriculturists who have lands in the neighbouring area. It is further stated that taking into consideration the objections raised by certain villagers, the official respondents have left twenty (20) links of land in R.S.No.236 and another twenty (20) links in R.S.No.243 for being used as rastha. It is also stated that for assigning the rest of the land, the Gram Panchayat has passed a resolution to the effect that they have no objection for such assignment. Inasmuch as this Writ Petition is filed on the main plank that assignment of the land deprives the villagers of their right to passage and in view of the categorical assertion of the District Collector that the land to the width of forty (40) links – twenty (20) links each in R.S.Nos.236 and 243 – has been left for passage, the grievance of the petitioner and other villagers has been redressed. The Writ Petition is accordingly disposed of with the direction to the official respondents to maintain the passage to the above mentioned extent to enable the villagers to use the same as a passage. As a sequel to disposal of the Writ Petition, W.P.M.P. No.10607 of 2002 and W.V.M.P. No.1278 of 2003, filed by the respective parties, are disposed of as infructuous. ______________________ C.V. NAGARJUNA REDDY, J 30.12.2009 bnr