ORDER :

W.P.No.24872 of 2020

This writ petition is filed by the petitioners under Article 226 of the Constitution of India seeking the following reliefs:

“…to issue a writ, order or direction more particularly one in the nature of writ of mandamus to declare the action on the part of the respondents 2 to 6 herein in not taking any action to evict the encroacher/7th respondent, who is obstructing the villagers to go and utilize the burial ground Ac.3.96 cents in Sy.No.79/1 of Sagipudi village, Dondapudi Gram Panchayath, Gopalapuram Mandal, West Godavari District basing on the fabricated Patta L.D.No.183/2012/139 to an extent of Ac.3.10cents in survey No.79/1 of the Tahsildar, Gopalapuram, in view of the proceedings in Rc.No.260/2020/SA, dated 18.06.2020 of the 4th respondent, as illegal, arbitrary and violative of the provisions of the Constitution of India and consequently direct the respondents 2 to 6 to take action against the 7th respondent and evict him and handed over the burial ground to the gram panchayat for utilization of the villagers as per the said endorsement, dated 18.06.2020 by construct the compound wall around the burial ground..”.

2. This writ petition is filed by the petitioner under Article 226 of the constitution of India seeking the following reliefs:

“…to issue a Writ of Mandamus declaring the action of the 3rd respondent in trying to dispossess the petitioner from his property in R.S.No.79/1 in Sagipadu Village, Dondapudi Panchayat, Gopalapuram Mandal, West Godavari District under the guise of an impugned oral proceedings of the respondents 2 and 4 under Land Acquisition Act with intention to wrongful loss to the petitioners on the ground of „Government Lands? as illegal, improper, unjust, arbitrary, violative of Article 300-A, 21 of the Constitution of India and pass such other order or orders….”

3. As the issues in these two writ petitions are interrelated, these writ petitions are being disposed of by way of this common order. The parties hereinafter will be referred to with their status in W.P.No.24872 of 2020.

4. The case of the petitioners is that for the last 100 years the burial ground of Sagipudi Village, Gopalapuram Mandal to an extent of Ac.3.96 cents in Sy.No.79/1 was allotted by the Grama Panchayath for the purpose of funeral activities of demised persons in the village and since then the villagers are using the same for their customary funerals. As some encroachers have occupied the said burial ground, the villagers made a representation before the District Collector dated 16.09.2019 through Spandana Programme and after receipt of the said representation, the District Collector directed the Thasildar to take action for eviction of the encroachers from the burial ground. Pursuantly, the Tahsildar made an endorsement, dated 01.10.2019 informing that they are taking steps to evict the encroachers. But the 7th respondent obstructed the officials by showing the patta issued by the 4th respondent/Tahsildar stating that it is a private land and that, he filed W.P.No.21068 of 2019. When an application, dated 20.05.2020 was made to the 4th respondent by a villager by name Sri Mallipudi Yesu Ratnam under Right to Information Act requesting as to whether a patta can be granted to private persons for the land classified as burial ground of the village, if so, under which regulations. In response to the same, it is informed that the land to an extent of Ac.3.96 Cents in Sy.No.79/1 as per the Revenue records of Gopalapuram Mandal has been recorded as burial ground and no patta has been issued from their office in favour of the 7th respondent. Inspite of the same, the authorities have not evicted the 7th respondent from the burial ground, hence, they filed the W.P.No.24872 of 2020.

5. It is the case of the 7th respondent, who is writ petitioner in W.P.No.21068 of 2019, that his father by name Tanuku Kovvadayya has acquired the agricultural land in an extent of Ac.3.10 cents in R.S.No.79/1 and enjoyed the same