IMPORTANT POINT
The court affirmed that property disputes should be resolved in civil courts, not through writ petitions, emphasizing the limited role of municipal authorities in such matters.

ORDER :

(C.V. Bhaskar Reddy, J.)

As the issue involved in all these Writ Petitions is intrinsically interconnected, they are being taken up and heard together and disposed of by this common order. For the sake of convenience, these cases have been divided into two batches i.e, first batch and second batch.

2. The first batch of cases i.e., W.P.Nos.28215, 23808, 23821, 23823, 23824, 23826, 23835, 23855, 23863, 23875, 23898, 23900, 28246, 28270, 28273, 28314, and 29088 of 2023 are filed questioning the action of the Commissioner, Mancherial Municipality in rejecting the Building Permission applications submitted by the petitioners, who have purchased the plots in Sy.Nos.474/A and 476/B, situated at Garmilla Village, Mancherial, under layout in LP No.42/78.

3. The second batch of cases i.e, W.P.Nos.12382, 20090, 20230, 24487 of 2020; 17745, 24898 of 2021; 46173, 46210, 46269 of 2022; 1963, 2057 and 2070 of 2023 are filed challenging the releasing of layout in LP 42/78, dated 06.06.2014 for the lands situated in Sy.Nos.474/A and 476/B situated at Garmilla Village, Mancherial.

4. The brief facts that are necessary for disposal of these writ petitions are stated as under:

5. The case of the petitioners in W.P.No.28215 of 2023 and batch (first batch of writ petitions) is that they have purchased various extents of plots from Umar Miya Colony House Building Society (hereinafter called as “Society”) under various registered sale deeds and their vendor-Society, which is registered vide Regd.No.TM 406, in turn purchased the property from pattedar S.A. Hameed, whose name is recorded as Pattedar in the revenue records for the lands admeasuring Ac.12.21 guntas in Sy.Nos.474/A and 476/B, situated at Garmilla Village, Mancherial Mandal, Adilabad District. The further case of the petitioners is that the pattedar has applied for a layout plan for the above said land and thereafter, divided the same into 86 plots including roads, open spaces etc,. The layout submitted by the original Pattedar S.A.Hameed was approved by the Director of Town and Country Planning, Hyderabad, (hereinafter referred as “DTCP”) vide proceedings dated 21.10.1978 subject to payment of conversion fee and security deposit as required under Sections 184 and 185 of Municipalities Act. The case of the petitioners is that said Pattedar failed to remit the revenue arrears and for realization of the arrears, the said lands were auctioned. In the auction conducted by the revenue authorities, the Society and three others have purchased the said property. The Revenue Divisional Officer, Nirmal vide proceedings dated 12.03.1979, confirmed the auction conducted for the said property. It is also case of the petitioners that when the title and possession of the Society has been disputed by the protected tenants, the Society was constrained to file a civil suit vide O.S.No.165 of 1981 on the file of the Junior Civil Judge, Luxettipet, seeking injunction and the same was decreed in favour of the Society vide judgment and decree dated 29.01.1983. It is further case of the petitioners that the protected tenants surrendered their tenancy rights orally and delivered possession of the lands to the pattedar S.A.Hameed. It is alleged by the petitioners that they have purchased the plots of various extents in the layout approved by DTCP, vide layout in LP No.42/78. It is their further case that Society has submitted a representation to the Municipal Commissioner, for depositing the requisite fee and development charges for release of the layout. The Municipal Commissioner vide letter dated 27.05.2006 sought clarification from the DTCP for receiving the amounts from the Society for releasing the layout in favour of the Members of the Society as well as other purchasers. The DTCP, vide proceedings dated 12.03.2007 directed the Municipal Commissioner to submit fresh proposal for change of land use subject to the condition that no development shall be allowed till the Government issued confirmation o