HYDERABAD: The Telangana High Court has directed the state government to consider the claim of a war-disabled Indian Army veteran for allotment of a 300-square-yard house site in any municipal area of Telangana within three months. Justice NV Shravan Kumar allowed a writ petition filed by P Seetaramaraju, a former Havaldar who sustained injuries during the 1971 Indo-Pak War and was medically boarded out of service in 1975.
The court set aside a July 24, 2014 memo issued by the then Rangareddy district collector rejecting his claim on the ground that he was a native of West Godavari district in undivided Andhra Pradesh.
The petitioner contended that he had been residing in Hyderabad since 1975 and that similarly placed ex-servicemen had been allotted house sites irrespective of their nativity.
The state argued that the applicable government orders contemplated allotment only in the beneficiary’s native district and that no vacant government land was available in Survey No 123 of Hydernagar village. It further submitted that the petitioner could not insist on allotment of land at a location of his choice.
The court held that denying the benefit solely on the basis of nativity defeated the object of the welfare scheme meant to rehabilitate soldiers injured while serving the nation. While clarifying that the petitioner cannot insist on a particular parcel of land, the court directed the authorities to pass appropriate orders for allotment of a 300-square-yard house site within three months, strictly in accordance with law.