IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT HYDERABAD FOR THE STATE OF TELANGANA AND THE STATE OF ANDHRA PRADESH FRIDAY, THE FIFTH DAY OF SEPTEMBER TWO THOUSAND AND FOURTEEN Present HON’BLE SRI JUSTICE P.NAVEEN RAO WRIT PETITION No.24069 of 2014 Between:
Maheswarla Radha, W/o. M.C. Venkateswarlu, Aged 38 years, R/o. D.No.26-672, Bangaraiah Kottala Street, Rameswaram Village, Proddatur Town & Mandal, Kadapa District.
.. Petitioner AND The Government of A.P., Rep. by the Principal Secretary, Revenue Department, Secretariat, Hyderabad & 4 others .. Respondents The Court made the following:
HON’BLE SRI JUSTICE P.NAVEEN RAO WRIT PETITION No.24069 of 2014 ORDER:
The case of the petitioner is that he is the absolute owner and in possession of residential plot bearing Municipal House No.26-672 to an extent of 92.5 square yards in Survey No.430 in Bangaraiah Kottala Street, Ward No.26, Rameswaram Village, Proddatur Town and Mandal, Kadapa District. The petitioner claims to have purchased the same from one Ummadisetty Chowdaiah on 27.02.2003 vide registered Sale Deed Bearing No.682 of 2003. The vendor of the petitioner purchased the same from one Nama Subbamma and others vide registered Sale Deed bearing No.2500 of 1959, dated 01.08.1959. The petitioner intended to dispose of the said property and when approached the Sub- Registrar, Proddatur, YSR Kadapa District (5th respondent) to ascertain the market value and registration charges, the Sub-Registrar refused to furnish the information vide his endorsement, dated 25.06.2014, stating that the property is classified as ‘Vadla Inam’ as per the list communicated by the Tahsildar, Proddatur Mandal, YSR Kadapa District (4th respondent) vide his Reference No.B/2622/2008, dated 09.09.2008.
2. Learned counsel for the petitioner contends that no statutory notification was issued prohibiting registration on the said property and, therefore, the Sub-Registrar could not have refused to process the request made by the petitioner by referring to a letter issued by the Tahsildar and that he is only incumbent to issue such letter. Learned counsel for the petitioner further contended that it is a private patta land and the transactions relate back to 1959 and she further submits that even assuming that the land is classified as ‘Vadla Inam’, several decisions were passed by this Court concerning the lands which are classified as Inams granted to Mangala and Vadla, etc. This Court disposed of batch of writ petitions by order, dated 01.04.2014, which concerns land assigned as ‘Mangala Inam’. Following the earlier decisions of this Court, the writ petitions were disposed of.
3. Learned Government Pleader produced instructions furnished by the Sub-Registrar, Proddatur, YSR Kadapa District (5th respondent) which disclose the classification of land as ‘Vadla Inam’ . In W.P.No.15169 of 2009, this Court held as under:
“In the light of the aforestated provision, the prohibition with regard to registration of documents in respect of Government lands arises out of the publication of a notification under clause (e). Admittedly, there is no notification under Section 22-A of the said Act in respect of Survey No.250 of Proddatur Village. In the absence of a prohibition relatable to law, it is not open to the revenue authorities to stall the registration of documents by the registration authorities on the basis of a mere communication based on revenue records. The classification of the subject land in Survey No.250 basing on such revenue records posing a bar to the entertainment for registration of the document presented by the petitioner cannot be countenanced. If the Government seeks to assert its title over the subject land contrary to the evidence manifested by the registered transactions dating back to 1955, it is for them to do so in a properly constituted proceeding before the appropriate forum. By mere recourse to an entry in the R.S.Register, Proddatur, the Government cannot seek to wipe out the events borne out by record and claim title.”
4. Following the earlier decisions of this Court and in view of the view expressed by this Court in W.P.No.15169 of 2009, this Writ Petition is also disposed of directing the Sub- Registrar, Proddatur, YSR Kadapa District (5th respondent) to furnish the market value of the properties of the petitioner in respect of residential plot bearing Municipal House No.
26-672 to an extent of 92.5 square yards in Survey No.430 in Bangaraiah Kottala Street, Ward No.26, Rameswaram Village, Proddatur Town and Mandal, Kadapa District, and to receive and process the Deed of Conveyance as and when presented by the petitioner, in accordance with the Registration Act, 1908, and the Indian Stamp Act, 1899. If the Sub-Registrar is of the opinion that the document cannot be processed for registration and has valid reasons for refusing to register the Deed of Conveyance, he shall assign reasons and pass orders under Section 71 of the Registration Act, 1908, and communicate the same to the petitioner within a period of two (2) weeks from the date of receipt of such document. However, it is open to the Government to assert its title by following the due process of law and mere registration of Deed of Conveyance does not take away such right of the Government to establish its title. There shall be no order as to costs. Miscellaneous Petitions, if any, pending in this writ petition shall stand closed.
P.NAVEEN RAO, J Date: 5th September, 2014 KL HON’BLE SRI JUSTICE P.NAVEEN RAO WRIT PETITION No.24069 of 2014 Date: 5th September, 2014 KL