ORDER:- This writ petition is filed for a writ of mandamus to direct the respondents to withdraw the acquisition proceedings while declaring their inaction in this respect, as illegal and arbitrary.

2. The petitioners are the owners of land admeasuring Acs.8-03 cents situated in Sy. No.213/1 to 10 of Pedagantyada, Visakhapatnam District. They applied for sanction of a layout to the Visakhapatnam Urban Development Authority, which was added as respondent No.5 to this writ petition as per order dated 23.10.2007 of this Court. On 9.5.2001, respondent No.5 issued proceedings approving the Block Layout Plan (BLP No.6 of 2001). Thereafter, notification under Section 4(1) of the Land Acquisition Act, 1894 (for short, 'the Act') was issued in the year 2002 (date of the notification is not available on record). Evidently, no further steps were taken to complete the acquisition proceedings.

3. As the acquisition proceedings have got lapsed by operation of law with the non-passing of the award within the stipulated time, the petitioners approached respondent No.5 to issue approval for final layout. As there was no response from respondent No.5, certain persons, who are similarly situated as the petitioners, filed Writ Petition No.4809 of 2006 in this Court, which was disposed of by order dated 13.3.2006, wherein the learned Judge has taken note of the contention advanced on behalf of respondent Nos.2 and 3 that proposals for withdrawing the notification under Section 48(1) of the Act were submitted to the Government through the Chief Commissioner of Land Administration, A.P., Hyderabad vide letter dated 22.1.2005 for approval and that the Special Chief Secretary and CCLA has also recommended vide his letter dated 26.7.2005 to the Secretary to the Government, Industries and Commerce (INF) Department for withdrawal of the lands from acquisition and that orders in this regard are awaited from the Government. In view of the said submissions, the earned Judge closed the writ petition, as no further orders are necessary.

4. In the present writ petition, the grievance of the petitioners is that though the proposals for withdrawal of their lands from the acquisition have been pending since 22.1.2005, respondent No.1 has not given its approval till date and respondent No.5 is not releasing the final layout plan on the ground that formal notification of withdrawal has not been issued by respondent No.1.

5. This writ petition initially came up on 6.8.2007 and has undergone several adjournments since then. No counter - affidavit has been filed on behalf of respondent Nos.1 to 4. Respondent No.5 was impleaded on 23.10.2007 and on 30.10.2007 the learned Standing Counsel for respondent No.5 has taken time for filing counter-affidavit, but so far, no counter - affidavit has been filed.

6. A perusal of letter dated 22.1.2005 submitted by the District Collector, Visakhapainam to the Secretary to the Government, Industries and Commerce (INF) Department, A.P., discloses that in order to establish a special economic zone to integrate the same with Gangavaram Port, the State Government proposed to acquire Ac.200-00 of land adjacent to the proposed port. It further shows that as per the provisions of the Act, an award ought to have been passed before 9.1.2005 and a sum of Rs.17.33 crores was to be deposited for that purpose; that in his letter dated 29.11.2004, Principal Secretary to Government, Industries and Commerce informed that Transport, Roads and Buildings Department has conveyed that the Chairman and Managing Director, Gangavaram Port, is not interested in acquisition of the lands and that the Government had given option to the Andhra Pradesh Industrial Infrastructure Corporation (for short, 'the APIIC') to take an appropriate view on the acquisition of the said land. It is further mentioned in the said letter that the APIIC felt that acquiring land for Free Trade Zone is not economical due to the gestation involved and requested that the requisition made

Click Here to Read the rest of this document