Telangana HC Returns Warangal Forest Land Case:

A two-judge panel at the Telangana High Court has referred a writ petition concerning the classification of 2,000 acres of land in Warangal as forest or not back to a single judge. This action came as a result of a writ appeal filed by the state government. In 2004, a single judge ruled in favor of a writ plea filed by the divisional forest officer, contesting the inclusion of what they claimed to be forest land. They argued that the 2,000 acres had been designated as private land by the forest settlement officer.

However, when the government initiated proceedings to the contrary in 1998, the current writ petition was filed and subsequently granted by a single judge. Earlier, the bench declined to grant additional time to the Additional Advocate General, and the case proceeded to be heard on its merits. A two-judge bench of the Telangana HC has declined to intervene in a single judge’s ruling regarding eviction from land under the Scheduled Area Land Transfer Regulation. In 1995, a single judge of the High Court had granted a writ plea brought by E. Shankaraiah of Adilabad, who faced eviction from approximately two acres of land in Balampur, Adilabad, on the grounds of violating the prohibition on land transfers in agency areas.

The single judge had determined that the petitioner had asserted, even before the primary authorities, that he had entered into a sale agreement in 1960 and had taken possession prior to the regulations. The bench comprised of Chief Justice Alok Aradhe and Justice N.V. Shravan Kumar determined that there was no valid reason or error in the ruling made by the single judge. The Telangana HChas issued a stay order, effectively halting the eviction of petitioners from a 509.79 square yard plot of land at Akshara Colony, Pedhamagada, Hanamkonda. This ruling was made absolute by Justice C. Sumalatha in a writ petition filed by E. Lingamurthy and others, challenging a notice issued by the Greater Warangal Municipal Corporation (GWMC) for their eviction.

The petitioners asserted that they have owned the land in question for more than 25 years. Chikkudu Prabhakar, the petitioners’ counsel, emphasized that they possessed sale deeds, link documents, and revenue records, suggesting that the claims made by the Ranganayaka Swamy temple were legally unfounded and that the petitioners could not be evicted summarily. Justice C.V. Bhaskar Reddy of the Telangana HC has ensured the payment of maintenance to elderly parents under the Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizen Act 2007 and Rules Act.

The judge extended an interim order in a writ plea filed by K. Dayanand and his wife, seeking a directive for state authorities to initiate proceedings in line with the Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizen Act 2007 and Rules, and to safeguard the petitioners’ life and property, as requested in their August 2022 complaint. During the hearing, the judge also requested the son to submit an affidavit confirming compliance with the court’s orders, including the timely payment of maintenance to his parents, along with any outstanding arrears.

On September 16, the case resumed again. A two-judge bench of the Telangana HC has accepted a writ challenging Section 97 of the AP Reorganisation Act 2014. According to the petitioner, an amendment was made without following the prescribed constitutional procedure, leading to the issuance of the Telangana public employment organization of the local cadre and regulations of direct recruitment order in 2018. The bench, consisting of Chief Justice Alok Aradhe and Justice N.V. Shravan Kumar, heard a writ plea brought by P. Thulasi Ram Prasad and 25 others, who alleged violations of Article 368 of the Constitution by both state and central governments. The bench has issued a notice to the respondents.

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