Karnataka High Court
Mrs K A Ponnamma @ Somavva vs The District Commissioner on 23 August, 2012
Author: B.S.Patil
Bench: B.S.Patil
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IN THE HIGH COURT OF KARNATAKA AT BANGALORE
DATED THIS THE 23RD DAY OF AUGUST 2012
BEFORE
THE HON'BLE MR.JUSTICE B.S.PATIL
W.P.Nos.10769/2011 & 12576/2011 (KLR-LG)
BETWEEN:
Mrs.K.A.Ponnamma @ Somavva
W/o late K.D.Appanna
Aged about 78 years
Bangoor Village, Cherambane Post,
Madikeri Taluk,
Kodagu District. ... PETITIONER
(By Sri M.B.Rajashekar, Adv. for Sri Y.Hariprasad, Adv.)
AND:
1. The District Commissioner,
Kodagu District,
Madikeri.
2. The Tahsildar
Somwarpet Taluk,
Kodagu District. ... RESPONDENTS
(By Sri Vijaykumar Patil, HCGP)
These writ petitions are filed under Articles 226 & 227 of
the Constitution of India, praying to quash the order dated
9.3.2010 vide Annexure-F passed by the 1st respondent and etc.
These petitions coming on for preliminary hearing-B
group this day, the Court made the following:
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ORDER
1. Petitioner is the wife of late K.D.Appanna, an Ex Army personnel. The late husband of the petitioner had filed an application for grant of land in an extent of 5 acres for cultivation as per the provisions of the Land Grant Rules, 1960. Considering the request made by the petitioner, the Deputy Commissioner vide his order dated 26.03.1968 granted 5 acres of land in Sy. No.6 of Basaraguppa Village in Somwarpet Taluk. The Authorities did not issue saguvali chit despite several representations made.
2. The husband of the petitioner died on 28.04.1999. After his death, petitioner filed W.P.No.620/2000 praying for a direction to issue saguvali chit pursuant to the grant made. This Court directed the respondent to issue saguvali chit or allot any other alternative land. When the said direction was not complied with, another writ petition was filed by the petitioner in W.P.No.15121/2008 which was also allowed on 15.11.2008 directing the respondents to grant the land in Sy. Nos.1 and 6 of Andanipura Village, Kushalanagara Hobli within two months.
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3. Despite the said direction, the land was not granted. Hence, a contempt petition was filed. During the pendency of the contempt petition, the 1st respondent-Deputy Commissioner, Kodagu District passed an order granting the land in Sy. Nos.1 and 6 totally measuring 5 acres situated at Andanipura Village subject to payment of Rs.70,000/- per acre as market value. In the light of this order, the contempt proceedings were dropped.
4. Aggrieved by the direction issued to pay the cost of the land at the rate of Rs.70,000/- per acre and also by the demand noticed issued vide Annexure-G on 01.04.2010 by the 2nd respondent-the Tahsildar, Somwarpet Taluk calling upon the petitioner to pay a sum of Rs.3,50,000/- pursuant to the order of grant, the present writ petition is filed.
5. On 17.08.2012, when this matter was listed for consideration, this court passed the following order:
"This is a very unfortunate case, where the widow of the ex-serviceman is knocking at the doors of the authorities to put her in possession of the land granted by collecting the permissible value.4
Petitioner contends that the land was granted in the year 1967-68 and as the land then granted was not available, another land was granted, that too, after the petitioner approached this Court twice. While granting the alternative land, the authorities have sought to collect the market value at the rate of Rs.70,000/- per acre.
The contention of the petitioner is that as per Rule 12(5) of the Karnataka Land Grant Rules, 1969, no price shall be payable in respect of the lands granted to Ex-servicemen, upto 2 hectares of dry land or 1 hectare of garden land or wet land with assured irrigation facilities from tanks or channels. However, the impugned order states that Rs.70,000/- per acre shall be paid by the petitioner in terms of the order of grant made under Section 77 of the Karnataka Land Reforms Act.
The direction issued to pay the amount at the rate of Rs.70,000/- per acre appears to be prima facie illegal. Petitioner has approached this Court for the fifth time. This matter cannot be delayed any further. The grievance of the widow of the soldier who has served the nation has to be redressed immediately. Hence, learned Government Pleader is directed to secure instructions and keep the concerned official attached to the office of the Deputy Commissioner 5 present before the Court on 23.08.2012 along with the calculations of price to be collected for grant of land. Any delay in this regard will be seriously viewed. Copy of this order to be made available to the Government Pleader."
Pursuant to the above direction, the Tahsildar, Somwarpet and also the concerned Sheristedar attached to the office of the Deputy Commissioner are present before the Court.
6. On instructions from the officers and in the light of the facts involved in the present case, learned Government Pleader fairly submits that the land granted to the petitioner is a land that has been vested in the Government as a surplus land under the provisions of the Land Reforms Act, 1961 (for short 'the Act') and as per Section 78, the grantee to whom the said surplus land is granted shall have to deposit the purchase price of the land so granted either in a lumpsum or in annual installments not exceeding twenty. In case of D Class land, the purchase price shall be an amount equivalent to twenty times the net annual income referred to in Sub-Section (2) of Section
72. 6
7. Learned Government Pleader draws the attention of the Court to Sub-Section (2) of Section 72 of the Act which in turn refers to Section 8 of the Act to contend that, if calculation is made based on these provisions purchase price would come to Rs.4,190/- for the entire extent of 5 acres of land granted to the petitioner. In fact, the calculation made in this regard by the concerned officials is placed before the Court along with a memo.
8. Learned Government Pleader submits on instructions from the concerned officials that the impugned notice will be withdrawn and a fresh notice calling upon the petitioner to pay the said sum of Rs.4,190/- will be issued giving the petitioner fifteen days time to make the payment. It is further submitted by the learned Government Pleader on instructions from the authorities that after the amount is paid/deposited, the petitioner will be put in possession of the 5 acres of land granted to her comprised in Sy. Nos.1 and 6 (4 acres in Sy. No.1 and 1 acre in Sy. No.6) situated at Andanipura Village in Somarwarpet Taluk.
9. Learned counsel appearing for the petitioner also fairly submits that the petitioner is agreeable to pay the said amount 7 of Rs.4,190/- towards the full value of the land granted to her provided she is put in possession immediately on payment of the amount. He further submits that necessary direction may be issued to the revenue and survey authorities to carry out the survey measurement of the land and put the petitioner in possession of the granted land by identifying and locating its boundaries.
10. In the light of the above, this writ petition deserves to be disposed of. Petition is accordingly disposed of with the following:
ORDER i. The impugned order Annexure-F passed by the Deputy Commissioner, Kodagu, Madikeri to the extent it imposes condition that the petitioner has to pay Rs.70,000/- per acre as the value of the granted land is set aside.
ii. It is made clear that the petitioner is liable to pay only a sum of Rs.4,190/- towards the value of the land granted in favour of the petitioner comprised in the two survey numbers. Consequently, 8 Annexure-G notice issued by the Tahsildar, Somwarpet is quashed.
iii. The Tahsildar is directed to issue a fresh notice calling upon the petitioner to pay Rs.4,190/- towards the total value of the land granted in an extent of 5 acres giving fifteen days time to the petitioner to make the payment. A copy of this notice duly signed by the Tahsildar is handed over to the petitioner today.
iv. The petitioner, as undertaken by her shall pay the amount of Rs.4,190/- within fifteen days from today. On such payment, the petitioner shall be put in possession of the land measuring 5 acres comprised in the two survey numbers. v. Respondents herein are directed to cause survey and measurement of the land in question so as to exactly identify the boundaries and its locations. This exercise shall be completed within a period of three months from the date of payment/deposit of the amount. It is needless to observe that 9 consequential steps shall be taken by the revenue authorities to effect entries in the records in the name of the petitioner pursuant to the grant made.
Sd/-
JUDGE VP