HYDERABAD: In a setback to AP government, the Hyderabad High Court on Thursday granted stay on dispossession and demolition of houses and structures at Poranki village in Krishna district for widening of National Highway No.65 (Old NH-9) between Vijayawada and Machilipatnam till further orders.
Justice A Ramalingeswara Rao was granting interim stay in a petition by Ramesh Kilaru and 71 others challenging the demolition of their houses and structures without notice. The judge called for the land acquisition records of the project.
Petitioners’ counsel B Rachna Reddy submitted that the government had decided to acquire the lands and structures of the petitioners for the said road widening and the compensation for lands and structures acquired for road widening was pending since 2009. Though the petitioners’ cases relating to compensation was pending, the authorities have issued two more notifications for land acquisition and no compensation was paid to them till date, she pointed out.
Further, the counsel submitted that the petitioners went for arbitration and it was also pending. Meanwhile, on August 10 the authorities filed a caveat before the court and then taking undue advantage of the holidays in a malicious planned manner, resorted to demolition of majority of structures of the entire stretch.