In a recent court case, Judge K. Sarath ruled in favor of 25 people from Divitipalli Village, Mahabubnagar. The government tried to take back their assigned lands without fair payment, but the court said, "Not so fast!"
The petitioners, including Smt. Polkampally Balamma and Mekala Kruhnaiah, were given lands by the government a long time ago. They’ve been farming these lands for years. But suddenly, they got notices saying they sold the lands illegally, which they denied. The government wanted these lands for public projects like a medical college and housing.
"The lands were taken for public purposes without paying compensation," argued the petitioners' lawyer.
The government claimed the lands were empty and not used for farming. They said the petitioners didn’t respond to notices and thus took back the lands for projects. They even started building houses and a medical college on these lands.
"The land was not taken back for public purpose under the RFCTLARR Act, 2013," said the government lawyer.
Judge K. Sarath found the government's actions unfair. The court noted that the government can't just take back lands without proper payment. The petitioners should be treated like full landowners and paid accordingly.
"The assignees are entitled to full market value compensation," the court ruled.
The court ordered the government to start the process of officially buying the lands and pay the petitioners within four months. This means the government has to officially buy the lands back and compensate the owners fairly.
This case highlights the importance of fair payment when the government takes land for public use. It also shows that legal rights can protect citizens against unfair government actions.
