HC Helps 85-Year-Old Get Compensation for His Land

Hyderabad: The Telangana High Court came to the rescue of an 85-year-old man by helping him get compensation for his land in Yadadri Bhuvanagiri district, on which roads and school buildings had come up without the authorities acquiring the land or giving him compensation.

The court took a serious view of the government’s failure to implement its earlier orders with regard to payment of compensation to the petitioner, Raheemuddin.

Justice Bollam Vijaysen Reddy directed the Yadadri Bhuvanagiri collector, revenue divisional officer, mandal parishad development officer, and the local tahsildar to comply with its judgment regarding payment of compensation to Raheemuddin within three weeks or face stringent action.

Rahemmuddin, who has settled down in the United States with his family, visited his native place Gopalapuram in Turkapally mandal in 2010 and was surprised to see that roads, school buildings, water tanks, a bore well and a bus stop had come up illegally in his land in Survey No. 171.

He got the land surveyed and found roads were laid to an extent of 5,867 square yards, a school building constructed on 2,839 square yards, a water tank (325 sq. yds), a bore well (248 sq. yds) and bus shelters (140 sq. yds) totaling 9,279 sq. yds or one acre and 38 guntas. These were occupied illegally by the Gopalpur gram panchayat. A pipeline has also been laid beneath the land.

When the issue came before the High Court, the authorities tried to say that the petitioner and others had sold the property to the sarpanch through ‘sada bainama’ (sale agreement on white paper). However, as there was no saida bainama, and the sarpanch was not authorised to make transactions on behalf of the gram panchayat, the High Court 2022 directed the collector to pay the compensation to Raheemuddin within 10 weeks.

The orders were not complied with. On Friday, the government pleader for land acquisition requested further time. The court gave the government three weeks.