1 APHC010300352017 IN THE HIGH COURT OF ANDHRA PRADESH AT AMARAVATI (Special Original Jurisdiction) [3493] MONDAY ,THE SIXTH DAY OF JANUARY TWO THOUSAND AND TWENTY FIVE PRESENT THE HONOURABLE SRI JUSTICE R RAGHUNANDAN RAO THE HONOURABLE DR JUSTICE VENKATA JYOTHIRMAI PRATAPA CONTEMPT APPEAL NO: 1/2017 Between: Sri. Hari Narayanan M. ...APPLICANT AND Egala Demudu and Others ...RESPONDENT(S) Counsel for the Applicant: 1. S LAKSHMINARAYANA REDDY(SC FOR GVMC) Counsel for the Respondent(S): 1. SRAVAN KUMAR NAIDANA The Court made the following Order:(per Hon’ble Sri Justice R. Raghunandan Rao) The petitioner herein claiming ownership over 300 sq.yards of land in Sy.No.164/5B in D.No.27-17 of Appannapalem Village, Vepagunta, Visakhapatnam District had approached the erstwhile High Court of Judicature at Hyderabad for the State of Telangana and the State of Andhra Pradesh, by way of W.P.No.28671 of 2016 contending that the said land had been taken over by the Greater Visakhapatnam Municipal Corporation without 2 compensation being paid and without considering the representation of the petitioner, dated 01.08.2016. 2. This Writ Petition was disposed of by a learned single judge of the Court, by an order dated 26.08.2016. In the said order, the learned Single Judge recorded the submission of the learned Standing Counsel for the Municipal Corporation as well as the Government Pleader for Land Acquisition that the respondents would consider the case of the petitioner within the time stipulated by the Court. On that basis, the learned Single Judge disposed of the Writ Petition directing the respondents to consider the representation of the petitioner, dated 01.08.2016, within a period of four weeks, from the date of receipt of a copy of this order. 3. The 2nd respondent therein, who is the appellant herein, had disposed of the said representation, by a speaking order, dated 20.10.2016. In the speaking order, the appellant herein took the view that the property belonged to the father and sister of the writ petitioner and that adequate compensation in the form of TDR bonds, allotment of JNNURM plots as well as structural compensation had been given and that the writ petitioner could not claim any compensation. 4. The writ petitioner filed C.C.No.2529 of 2016 contending that there has been violation of the directions of the learned Single Judge, dated 26.08.2016. 3 5. The learned Single Judge after going through the facts held that there was a delay in complying with the directions of this Court and that the said delay was deliberate, and allowed the Contempt Case and directed payment of costs of Rs.25,000/- by the appellant herein, to the writ petitioner. 6. Aggrieved by the said order, the present appeal has come to be filed before this Court. 7. A perusal of the facts would show that the appellant had taken necessary steps to comply with the directions of the Court. The minor delay in complying with the directions of the Court, would need to be looked at with a more liberal view. It may also be noted that the appellant had offered an unconditional apology which had already been accepted by the learned Single Judge. 8. Learned counsel for the writ petitioner, who is the respondent herein, has vehemently opposed any relief being given to the appellant on the ground that there has been a deliberate attempt by the appellant to disobey the order of the Court. 9. A conspectus of all these facts, we are of the opinion that the learned Single Judge having accepted the unconditional apology of the petitioner could have taken more lenient view of the matter and levying a fine of Rs.25,000/- may not have been necessary. 10. Accordingly, this Contempt Appeal is allowed setting aside the order dated 05.01.2017 in C.C.No.2529 of 2016. 4 As a sequel, pending miscellaneous applications, if any, shall stand closed. _____________________________ JUSTICE R.RAGHUNANDAN RAO _________________________________________ DR JUSTICE VENKATA JYOTHIRMAI PRATAPA RJS 5 THE HONOURABLE SRI JUSTICE R RAGHUNANDAN RAO THE HONOURABLE DR JUSTICE VENKATA JYOTHIRMAI PRATAPA CONTEMPT APPEAL NO: 1/2017 Dt: 06.01.2025 RJS