IN THE HIGH COURT OF KARNATAKA AT BENGALURU DATED THIS THE 11TH DAY OF JULY 2019 BEFORE THE HON’BLE MR.JUSTICE S.N.SATYANARAYANA WRIT PETITION NOs.43356-43360/2018(KLR-RES) BETWEEN 1. SMT ALAVELAMMA W/O SRI DASAPPA AGED ABOUT 58 YEARS R/A NO.164 TAMMANAYAKANAHALLI KASABA HOBLI ANEKAL TALUK BENGALURU URBAN DISTRICT-562 106 2. SRI SHIVARAJU S/O LATE MUNIYAPPA AGED ABOUT 23 YEARS R/A TAMMANAYAKANAHALLI KASABA HOBLI ANEKAL TALUK BENGALURU URBAN DISTRICT-562106 3. SRI PUTTAPPA S/O LATE PAPANNA AGED ABOUT 48 YEARS R/A TAMMANAYAKANAHALLI KASABA HOBLI ANEKAL TALUK BENGALURU URBAN DISTRICT-562106 4. SRI VENKATESHAPPA S/O LATE PAPANNA AGED ABOUT 50 YEARS R/A TAMMANAYAKANAHALLI KASABA HOBLI ANEKAL TALUK BENGALURU URBAN DISTRICT-562106 5. SRI H MUNIRAJU S/O LATE HANUMAIAH AGED ABOUT 48 YEARS R/A TAMMANAYAKANAHALLI KASABA HOBLI ANEKAL TALUK BENGALURU URBAN DISTRICT-562106 ... PETITIONERS (BY SRI GANAPATHY BHAT VAJRALLI, ADVOCATE) AND 1. THE STATE OF KARNATAKA REPRESENTED BY ITS CHIEF SECRETARY GOVERNMENT OF KARNATAKA VIDAHNA SOUDHA DR B R AMBEDKAR VEEDHI BENGALURU-560001 2. THE PRINCIPLE SECRETARY DEPARTMENT OF REVENUE GOVERNMENT OF KARNATAKA VIDHANA SOUDHA DR B R AMBEDKAR VEEDHI BENGALURU-560001 3. THE PRINCIPLE SECRETARY URBAN DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT GOVERNMENT OF KARNATAKA VIKASA SOUDHA DR B R AMBEDKAR VEEDHI BENGALURU-560001 4. THE COMMISSIONER BRUHATH BENGALURU MAHANAGARA PALIKE N R SQUARE HUDSON CIRCLE BENGALURU-560002 5. THE DEPUTY COMMISSIONER BANGALORE URBAN DISTRICT KANDAYA BHAVAN K G ROAD BENGALURU-560009 6. THE ASSISTANT COMMISSIONER BANGALORE SOUTH KANDAYA BHAVAN K G ROAD BENGALURU-560009 7. THE TAHSILDAR ANEKAL TALUK ANEKAL BENGALURU URBAN DISTRICT-562106 8. THE PRINCIPLE SECRETARY DEPARTMENT OF DEFENCE GOVERNMENT OF INDIA NEW DELHI-111 004 9. THE DEFENCE ESTATE OFFICER NEAR KVMEG AND CENTRE KARNATAKA AND GOA CIRCLE BENGALURU-560042 ... RESPONDENTS (BY SRI VENKATESH DODDERI, AGA FOR R1 TO R3 & R5 TO R7 SRI K.N.PUTTEGOWDA, ADVOCATE FOR R4, SRI C.SHASHIKANTHA, CGSC FOR R8 & R9) THESE WRIT PETITIONS ARE FILED UNDER ARTICLES 226 AND 227 OF THE CONSTITUTION OF INDIA PRAYING TO DIRECT TO THE RESPONDENT NOS.5 TO 7 TO CONDUCT SURVEY IN RESPECT OF SY.NO.23, MEASURING 622.24 ACRES OUT OF WHICH AN EXTENT OF 296 ACRES 2 GUNTAS HAS TO BE DEMARCATED AS PER THE GRANT MADE BY THE RESPONDENTS TO THE PETITIONERS AND PETITIONERS LIKE PERSONS AND ALSO OTHER INSTITUTIONS AND INDUSTRIES WITH IMMEDIATE EFFECT AND ISSUE REGULAR SURVEY NUMBER TO THOSE PETITIONER AND PETITIONER LIKE PERSONS AND INSTITUTIONS AND ETC.
THESE WRIT PETITION COMING ON FOR PRELIMINARY HEARING IN ‘B’ GROUP THIS DAY, THE COURT MADE THE FOLLOWING:
ORDER The petitioners herein are said to be grantees of different extents of land in Sy.No.23 of Tammanayakanahalli village, Anekal Taluk, Bengaluru District. According to them, grant was considered in their favour in the year 1952 vide Annexures-A, B, C and D. In that, Annexure-D refers to grants in the names of 8 different persons referred to on top of the said document which is in From No.1.
2. The case of the petitioners is that 1st petitioner Alavelamma’s husband Dasappa was granted 3 acres, whereas 2nd petitioner’s grand father Sri.Boojalingaiah was granted 2 acres, the father of petitioners 3 and 4, namely Papanna was granted 2 acres of land and 5th petitioner’s mother Lakshmamma was granted 2 acres of land in the aforesaid survey number. According to them, though the lands were granted in their favour in or around 1952-53, saguvali chits were issued in the name of each of them subsequently after 1990 on different dates in favour of the petitioners.
3. When matter stood thus, the present writ petitions are filed by them on an apprehension that major portion of land in Sy.No.23 of Tammanayakanahalli village will be transferred in favour of the Department of Defence, Government of India and the said act is likely to take place even before phodi, durasth and Hadbasth of the lands granted in favour of petitioners’ ancestors is conducted to identify the location of each bit of the land which were granted in favour of petitioners’ ancestors. It is in this background, they are seeking writ of mandamus directing respondents 5 to 7 to conduct survey in respect of Sy.No.23 which is totally measuring 622.24 acres according to petitioners. The petitioners would also state that 296.02 acres has already been demarcated as per the grant made by respondents to petitioners and other similarly situated persons, institutions and industries. Therefore, they are seeking issuance of regular survey numbers to the petitioners and others who are similarly situated. The petitioners are also seeking writ of mandamus in directing respondents 1 to 5 not to handover an extent of 207 acres in Sy.No.23 to Defence without conducting survey and phodi work of the land in question.
4. When this matter came up before the Court at preliminary hearing stage, an order was passed in directing the ADLR, Anekal Taluk, Bengaluru Rural District, to conduct survey of land bearing Sy.No.23 of Tammanayakanahalli. Based on said direction issued by this Court on 3.4.2019, survey is said to be conducted, wherein location of the extent of lands granted in favour of petitioners’ ancestors is identified in the sketch, which is prepared by the survey authorities. A copy of that is also produced before this Court. Therefore, first prayer of the petitioners with this, is already complied. Now what requires to be done is, providing separate survey numbers to the bits of lands which are granted in favour of petitioners’ ancestors which is identified in the survey sketch prepared by the ADLR of Anekal Taluk by conducting phodi and durasth work and effect revenue entries in their name.
5. At this juncture, the learned Additional Government Advocate tried to assert that since grants are of the year 1952 whether the same is amenable to section 94A(4) of the Karnataka Land Revenue Act, 1964, is required to be looked into. However, this Court is of the opinion that such a defence is not taken by the Government in first place, secondly when the documents available on record are looked into, the same would indicate that the grant is of the year 1952, therefore at this juncture such liberty cannot be given to the Government. Therefore, the only thing that is required to be done by the respondents is conducting hadbasth of the lands which are identified by them to be granted in favour of the petitioners’ ancestors, thereafter, conducting phodi work and issuing separate survey numbers to said lands.
6. With reference to challenge of the petitioner either handing over of 207 acres or any extent of land in favour of Defence or to any other authority of the State including BBMP and other departments, the same is not within the competence of petitioners to seek any regulation on that and it is open to the Government to allot such extent of land to any person or institution of its choice as it deems fit, therefore the prayer of the petitioners to that extent cannot be considered.
7. At this juncture, the learned AGA would submit that 207 acres is already transferred to BBMP for which MR is also created in MR.No.140/2008-09 as could be seen from the RTC of Sy.No.23 of Tammanayakanahalli village Anekal Taluk, Bengaluru Urban District.
8. Therefore, this Court would observe that while conducting survey if the lands which are identified as the lands granted in favour of petitioners’ ancestors is handed over to BBMP, it is the responsibility of the State to take possession of the same and then handover the same to the petitioners at the earliest, not later than three from months from the date of receipt of a copy of this order.
9. With such observations, these writ petitions are disposed of in the presence of Sri Mahadevaiah, Tahsildar, Anekal Taluk, who is present before the Court.
Sd/- JUDGE nd/-