HYDERABAD:Suspecting conspiracy behind allotment of lands to various companies in the name of Special Economic Zone (SEZ) at Regadichilaka, Racherlapadu, Bodduvaripalem and other villages of Kodavalur mandal in Nellore district, a division bench of the Hyderabad High Court on Monday warned of ordering an inquiry into the irregularities.
The bench termed the activities taking place in the lands allotted to IFFCO in the villages a real estate business and that it amounts to white collar crime under the Prevention of Corruption Act.
“After acquiring lands from the people in the name of SEZ, and without paying compensation in time to the owners, the State government allots them to various companies indiscriminately and that the latter do not set up industries on such lands, and all these activities show that there is some big conspiracy behind it. To acquire lands belonging to the temples the government first resorts to annulling the existing temple boards and appoints persons in-charge in their place to cooperate with it for the purpose,” the bench remarked.
The bench directed the revenue authorities to submit records to the court regarding the allotment of lands belonging to Sri Kodanda Rama Swamy temple and other details.The bench comprising Chief Justice TBN Radhakrishnan and Justice SV Bhatt, was passing this order following petitions filed separately by E Sridhar Reddy and three others and K Suseelamma and 121 others of Sri Potti Sriramulu Nellore district seeking direction to the authorities concerned to submit a status report on the assigned lands which were allotted to IFFCO in Regadichilaka, Racherlapadu and Bodduvaripalem villages of Kodavalur mandal, Uchaguntapalem and Chowtaputhedu of Dagadarthi mandal and North Amuluru of Allur mandal.
The plea filed last year alleged irregularities in land allotments and sought CBI probe. The petitioners submitted that 2,776 acres of their lands as well as those of the temple were allotted to IFFCO in 1997 for establishment of a urea plant in the district. However, there was no progress in the proposed plant. After hearing the case, the court directed the State revenue authorities to maintain status quo on the land allotment. It also directed the IFFCO and others concerned not to provide rights to others on the lands. Further, HC directed the Kavali RDO to find out the ownership rights of temple land.
When the matter came up for hearing, senior counsel S Ramachandra Rao, appearing for the petitioners, told the court that the officials had not paid any compensation for the temple lands. In spite of the court order passed in 2008, the officials failed to take any decision till date in respect of ownership rights of the lands, he pointed out.
Taking a serious view of non-implementation of the court order, the bench said that the officials’ inaction was nothing but making mockery of the court orders. When the government counsel sought one month time to take a decision on the issue of ownership rights of the lands, the bench refused to consider the plea and directed the government to submit relevant records before it and adjourned the case hearing to Wednesday.