1 NV,J W.P.No.1791 of 2020 THE HONOURABLE SRI JUSTICE VENKATESWARLU NIMMAGADDA WRIT PETITION NO. 1791 OF 2020 ORDER: 1. This writ petition is filed under Article 226 of the Constitution of India to declare the action of the respondents in taking steps to assign house site pattas to landless poor on public road existing in Sy.No.1/7 and Sy.No.6/1 of Kaspa Pentapadu Village, Pentapadu Mandal, West Godavari District, as illegal, arbitrary and consequently direct the respondents not to assign house site pattas on the said public road. 2. The case of the petitioners, in brief, is that, the petitioners owned and possessed agricultural lands of various extents in Kaspa Pentapadu, Devara Cheruvu, Khandrika Villages of Pentapadu Mandal, West Godavari District. The respondents are proposing to divide as house plots in respect of use the land adjacent to the petitioners' property, which is a public road, to provide house sites for eligible beneficiaries. The State Government in the recent past took a policy decision to distribute house site under the flagship programme "Navaratnalu- Pedalandariki Illu". In pursuance of the same, some officials from the office of respondents came to the land in Sy.Nos.1/7 and 6/1, which is earmarked for community purpose, along with police people, inspected the same for distribution of the said land to the houseless poor in the village. The petitioners brought to the notice of the officials that the land was earmarked 2 NV,J W.P.No.1791 of 2020 for communal purpose. Later, the petitioners submitted a detailed representation to respondents brining to their notice that the land is meant for communal purpose. No reply was given and no action was taken on the representation of the petitioners. Hence the writ petition. 3. Respondent No.6 – the Panchayat Secretary of Kaspa Pentapadu – filed a counter affidavit stating that the responsibility for preparing and issuing house site pattas lies with Respondent No.5, who has the appropriate jurisdiction. Respondent No.6 does not have the authority to issue house site pattas for the land in question, which is an alleged road. Therefore, Respondent No.6 is not empowered to take any steps toward issuing house site pattas on the road situated in the village. 4. Sri Y. Koteswara Rao, learned Standing Counsel appearing for Kaspa Pentapadu Gram Panchayat furnished written instructions received from the Panchayat Secretary, Kaspa Pentapadu, wherein it is stated that, no layout is formed and no house sites are distributed in R.S.Nos.1/7, 6/1, 268, 269. 5. During hearing, Sri M.V. Subba Reddy, learned counsel for the petitioners contended that, land in R.S.Nos.1/7 and 6/1 of Kaspa Pentapadu Village, Pentapadu Mandal, West Godavari District is earmarked for public purpose/community purpose and it cannot be utilized for any other purpose rather than, for which it has been originally classified. He submits that, the subject land is classified as Cart Track (Bandi Dari) Government Poramboke. 3 NV,J W.P.No.1791 of 2020 Once the subject land was classified as cart track/government poramboke, the same cannot be converted for any other purpose rather than for which it is originally meant for. If the subject land was converted into house plots, the petitioners and other villagers who are having their lands abutting to the cart track and who are having ingress and egress through this Cart track to reach their lands will be put to irreparable loss, by losing their ingress and egress, thereby they would be deprived of their livelihood. But, now the respondents are proposing to convert the same into house site contrary to the purpose for which it is meant, which is illegal and arbitrary and requested to issue a direction as stated above. 6. At this stage, Learned Government Pleader for Revenue furnished written instructions received from the Tahsildar, Pentapadu vide Roc.386/2025, wherein it is stated, the Government of Andhra Pradesh has launched a Flagship Programmme “Navaratnalu Pedalandariki Illu” to distribute House Site Pattas to all eligible house less poor and identified an extent of Ac.0-98 cents out of total extent of Ac.3-10 cents in R.S.No.1/7 & 6/1 of Kaspa Pentapadu Village which is classified as Cart Track Poramboke for distribution of House Site Pattas to eligible persons and an extent of Ac.2- 12 cents is left for passage of men, cattle tracks, crop harvesting machines reaching to their lands. The petitioners are having lands on either side of the subject “Cart Track Government Poramboke and hence, against the proposal of distribution of house sites in the subject cart track, the petitioners have filed 4 NV,J W.P.No.1791 of 2020 the present writ petition wrongly alleging that the subject land is a Public Road. At present, the subject land is covered by court litigation, an alternative site has been identified for distribution fo house sites and the same has been acquired under Voluntary Land Acquisition and House site pattas have also been distributed in those alternative sites to the villagers of subject village and therefore, at present there is no need of the subject land covered by the present writ petition to the department, and if at all the department is in need of the land covered by the present writ petition in future, necessary procedure will be followed as per law, for distribution of hosue sites in the land covered by the present writ petition 7. Heard learned counsel for the petitioners, learned Government Pleader for Revenue, learned Standing Counsel for Gram Panchayat and perused the material available on record. 8. When once the land is reserved for public purpose, it cannot be converted into house sites and assign the same to the public under any scheme in view of the law laid down by the Apex Court in "Jagpal Singh and others vs. State of Punjab and others1", wherein the Apex Court held as follows: “Para 3: The protection of common rights of the villagers were so zealously protected that some legislation expressly mentioned that even the vesting of the property with the State did not mean 1 AIR 2011 SUPREME COURT 1123 5 NV,J W.P.No.1791 of 2020 that the common rights of villagers were lost by such vesting. Thus, in Chigurupati Venkata Subbayya v. Paleduga Anjayya (1972) 1 SCC 521) SCC Page 529 the Court observed in Para 23 as follows: "23. It is true that the suit lands in view of Section 3 of the Estates Abolition Act did vest in the Government. That by itself does not mean that the rights of the community over it were taken away. Our attention has not been invited to any provision of law under which the rights of community over those lands can be said to have been taken away. The rights of the community over the suit lands were not created by the principal or any other landholder. Hence those rights cannot be said to have been abrogated by Section 3(c) of the Estates Abolition Act." 9. In view of the principle laid down in the above judgment, communal land, though available, cannot be alienated to any third party defeating the common rights of the villagers. 10. In view of my foregoing discussion, proposed conversion of land, which is earmarked for communal purpose, by granting house site pattas is an illegality and contrary to the provisions of the Act and the Rules framed thereunder. Therefore, the writ petition deserves to be allowed. 11. In the result, writ petition is allowed with the following directions: a. the action of the respondents in taking steps to assign house site pattas in cart track existing R.S.Nos.1/7 and 6/1 of Kaspa 6 NV,J W.P.No.1791 of 2020 Pentapadu Village, Pentapadu Mandal, West Godavari District, for purpose of house sites under “Navaratnalu- Pedalandariki Illu” Scheme as illegal or arbitrary. b. The respondents are directed not allot to house site pattas in cart track existing in R.S.Nos.1/7 and 6/1 of Kaspa Pentapadu Village, Pentapadu Mandal, West Godavari District, for purpose of house sites under “Navaratnalu- Pedalandariki Illu” Scheme. 12. Consequently, Miscellaneous Petitions, if any, pending in this Writ Petition shall stand closed. _____________________________________ VENKATESWARLU NIMMAGADDA,J Date: 28.08.2025 SP 7 NV,J W.P.No.1791 of 2020 THE HONOURABLE SRI JUSTICE VENKATESWARLU NIMMAGADDA WRIT PETITION NO: 1791 OF 2020 28.08.2025 W SP