Southern States
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Andhra Pradesh-Hyderabad
Govt. declared owner of prime 20-acre site near Hussainsagar
By K. Venkateshwarlu
HYDERABAD, DEC. 5. In a significant judgement, the Special Court constituted under the AP Land Grabbing (Prohibition) Act, has declared the State Government as the rightful owner of the prime 20-acre site forming part of the Hussainsagar lake and those in occupation of it as landgrabbers.
The Special Court directed the respondent "landgrabbers" to deliver possession of the property to the applicant State Government within two months from Wednesday, failing which, the Revenue Divisional Officer should take necessary steps for evicting them.
Mr. Justice P. L. N. Sarma, Chairman of the Special Court, speaking for the Bench consisting of himself, Mr. B. Krishnamurthy, Judicial Member and Mr. M. K. R. Vinayak, Revenue Member, allowed the Government's application and imposed Rs.5000 on the respondents as costs.
In its application filed in 1994, the Government claimed that 20 acres forming part of the Hussainsagar tank covered by Survey No. 9 in the limits of Khairatabad village of the then Golconda Mandal, belonged to it. It alleged that most of this property was vacant and the respondents, Mr. Y. Satyanarayana and 12 others, were trying to raise crops and obstructed the laying of Necklace Road.
On the other hand, the respondents claimed title and ownership over the property. While the large chunk of 17 acres under "mazi survey no. 39" was claimed to have been granted to Mr. Hazari Kasi, the predecessor-in-interest of the respondents, the remaining three acres was shown under "mazi survey no. 37 originally an inam land" owned by Mrs. Venkatamma Kulkarni and purchased by Mr. Narasimha who is the predecessor-in-title of a respondent.
After considering the evidence produced and hearing arguments from both sides, the Special Court found that in the survey conducted in 1914 in Khairatabad village, there were no "mazi survey numbers of 37 and 39" and that land with these regular survey numbers already existed. While survey number 37 was the office of the Director of Fisheries, survey number 39 was a "Boarding School", currently the Home Science College.
After a perusal of the original "khasra pahani, Faisal pattis", land revenue records and passbook, the Special Court held that "mazi survey numbers" do not exist and that they were included fradulently in collusion with the patwari in "khasra pahani" and other revenue records and that the Record of Rights was not applicable to Hyderabad. The inclusion of "mazi survey numbers of 37 and 39" at the end of the revenue record book was "a clear case of tampering".
The most crucial document submitted by the Government was a village map which was prepared pursuant to the survey in 1914. It showed that the entire land to the east of the railway junction was Hussainsagar and that there was no land on the eastern side of the junction. The Special Court relying upon this map held that the eastern side of the junction was part of the tank which was admittedly the property. It held that the respondents and their predecessors were not the pattedars or owners of the property.
The Special Court also rejected the respondents' contention that they had prescribed title by virtue of adverse possession, saying they had in fact claimed that they and their predecessors in title were the owners by way of purchase and not the Government. It was a moot point whether any person can claim adverse possession in respect of tanks, parks and other public utility property, the Court said. It pointed out that Hussainsagar tank being in the heart of the Twin Cities, it was the bounden duty of everybody including the State Government to preserve it from encroachments. "Public interest is involved in the preservation of the Hussainsagar tank to its full extent without any encroachment or grabbing and it is necessary even for maintaining ecological balance".
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