Legal heirs and descendants are liable to satisfy the lawful debts of a deceased ancestor to the extent of their interest in the joint family/ancestral property, even if they are not personally liable for the ancestor’s debts.

COMMON ORDER:

W.P.No.835 of 2018 is filed to declare the Orders passed by respondent No.2/District Collector, Kamareddy District, vide file No.D3/302/2017, dated 08.12.2017, as illegal, arbitrary and in violation of Article 14, 16 and 300-A of Constitution of India and consequently, to set aside the notice of attachment issued by the Tahsildar, Nagireddypet Mandal, Kamareddy District, vide proceedings No.A2/200/2011, dated 06.01.2014.

W.P.No.12155 of 2020 is filed to declare the Form No.1/Distraint Order under Section 8 issued by the Mandal Girdawar, Nagireddypet Mandal, Kamareddy District, as illegal, arbitrary and in violation of Article 300-A of Constitution of India and for consequential relief.

3. Heard Sri Ashok Reddy Kanathala, learned Counsel for the petitioner and learned Assistant Government Pleader for Revenue.

4. Since the parties in both the writ petitions is one and the same and the subject matter is interconnected, both the writ petitions are heard together and are disposed of by way of Common Order.

5. Brief facts of the case as averred in the writ affidavit are that petitioner’s husband is the absolute owner and possessor of agricultural lands admeasuring Ac.1-12 gts in Sy.No.14/1 and an extent of Ac.0-34 gts in Sy.No.14/2, situated at Jalalpur Village, Nagireddypet Mandal, Kamareddy District (hereinafter referred to as ‘subject property’), having inherited the same from his ancestors; that while petitioner’s husband was working as Post Master, at Jalalpur Branch, he misappropriate an amount of Rs.14,89,096/- from the funds under National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme and he expired on 17.06.2010; that respondent No.4-Tahsildar has issued Form No.5-notice of attachment, dated 06.01.2014, under Section 27 of Revenue Recovery Act, 1864 (for short ‘the Act, 1864’), to the petitioner, stating that the subject property will be brought to sale, in case, if the petitioner fail to deposit an amount of Rs.14,89,096/- on or before 22.01.2014; that petitioner made a representation dated 20.01.2014 before respondent No.2 stating that she did not know about the misappropriation of funds by her husband and the properties proposed to put to sale are ancestral properties and that her two sons are successors of the said properties as per the Hindu Succession Act, 1956, except the subject property, there is no other property to her family, therefore, requested to direct the respondent No.4 to withdraw the notice of attachment dated 06.01.2014; that respondent No.3 gave reply vide letter No.A6/1757/2013, dated 29.01.2014, denying the request of the petitioner.

6. Aggrieved by the notice of attachment dated 06.01.2014, petitioner filed a writ petition vide W.P.No.7379 of 2014 and this Court vide interim Order dated 12.03.2014, directed the respondents that attachment should continue, however, no action for realization of property be taken. Subsequently, the writ petition was disposed of vide Order dated 29.06.2017, directing the respondent No.2 to examine the reply dated 29.01.2014 and communicate the Order to the petitioner within a period of three months from the date of receipt of Order and granted liberty to the petitioner to file additional material/documents within four weeks from the date of Order and further extended the interim Order dated 12.03.2014, till a decision is taken by respondent No.2 and communicate the same to the petitioner.

7. It is further averred that petitioner submitted a representation dated 18.07.2017 to respondent No.2, see