Hyderabad: The Telangana High Court made it clear that owners of buildings in Patelguda village of Ameenpur mandal in Sangareddy district are entitled to file cases against the municipal authorities, revenue department and HYDRAA before the competent civil court claiming compensation and damages for the illegal demolition of their structures, subject to the condition that their buildings are situated in private patta lands.
The court clarified that if they are found to be in government land, then the residents cannot seek any relief. They will be left with only the option of urging the government to regularise their structures and the court cannot interfere in the said issue.
Meanwhile, the court also directed the assistant director of survey and land records in the district to conduct survey and localisation of the lands forming part of survey nos. 6 and 12 of Patelguda village to fix the boundaries and to demarcate patta and government lands.
Justice C.V. Bhaskar Reddy was dealing with a batch of petitions filed by residents of Patelguda, whose houses were recently demolished by revenue and civic authorities with the assistance of HYDRAA. The aggrieved house owners complained to the court that their buildings are situated in private patta land and their seller had obtained the nala conversion permission to convert the agricultural land into a residential zone. The petitioners also submitted registration documents and building permissions. Without issuing any notice or survey, the authorities had demolished the buildings, which is a violation of the principle of natural justice, the petitioners contended.
On the contrary, revenue authorities brought to the notice of the court that the petitioners had, on the pretext of survey number six, encroached government land, which in survey number 12. Hence, a call was taken to raze the said buildings.
During the course of hearing, the court faulted the revenue authorities for not protecting government land and how they could demolish the structures without giving any opportunity to other side.
The court directed the conduct of a survey and fixing boundaries across the said survey numbers by issuing notices to the petitioners and others. The court also made it clear that the petitioners are entitled to institute appropriate cases before the competent civil court claiming compensation and damages for the illegal demolition of their structures.
The court directed both sides to maintain status quo on the said lands till the completion of the said survey and localisation of the lands forming part of survey nos. 6 and 12 of Patelguda village.
