The High Court on Monday dismissed the petition filed by the State government seeking to recall the HC’s earlier judgment granting title and rights over 85 acres of land in Raidurg to two private parties.
Pronouncing verdict in the Letters Patent Appeal filed by Telangana government, the bench of Justices G. Sridevi and M.G. Priyadarsini suspended the sentence of imprisonment awarded to B. Rajesham, Serilingampally tahsildar of Ranga Reddy district, for four months. However, the tahasildar was directed to enforce the HC orders issued in year 2009 in a matter pertaining to the said lands. If the tahsildar fails to implement the HC direction, he would have to serve the jail term, the bench said.
The State government’s contention in the matter was that it had successfully won several rounds of litigation over the 85 acres of land worth hundreds of crores rupees in Raidurg. However, two private parties, who filed review petitions in the HC, secured orders claiming rights over the 85 acres of prime land.
Senior counsel of the Supreme Court C.S. Vaidyanathan, who appeared for the State government, contended that the HC did not give an opportunity to the State government to present its contentions, he argued.
The senior counsel, presenting his contentions, said that the HC was supposed to hear on the maintainability of the review petition filed by the private persons. However, the HC had pronounced verdict on the merits of the case by relying on the incorrect documents presented by the private persons, he said.
The copy of the sale of the Raidurg property filed by the review petitioners was obtained from the State Archives, the bench said in the judgment. This document indicated that it is private self-acquired property of the ancestors of the defendants in the preliminary decree and it is not a Jagir or Inam or Government land, the verdict said.
Several authorities in their orders stated that the property was a patta land of Asman Jahi Paigah and it was never under dispute with the Board of Revenue, the bench said. The Raidurg Paigah property was never taken under Jagir Abolition regulations by any government authority, the verdict said.
