PIL challenges regularisation of Sadabainama, hearing today
Questioning the State government under which provision of law it has been receiving applications for regularisation of unregistered sale transactions (Sadabainama), a division bench of the High Court, on Tuesday, directed the State to respond by Wednesday.
The bench comprising Chief Justice Raghvendra Singh Chauhan and Justice B Vijaysen Reddy passed this order in a PIL moved in the form of lunch motion by Shinde Devidas, farmer from Nirmal district, with a plea to set aside the GO 112, which was issued on October 12 this year for regularising the unregistered sale transactions under Act, 1971.
Petitioner’s counsel C Naresh Reddy told the court that the new Act - Telangana Rights in Land and Pattadar pass books Act, 2020 was notified by the government on October 29 this year and the same came into force in the State.
Later, the government issued the impugned GO under the now repealed Act for regularisation of unregistered sale transactions which took place before June 2, 2014, and accordingly all Collectors were directed to receive claims upto October 31 this year and the same was extended till November 10. The GO was issued before the new Act came into force, but the enquiry on the claims is being conducted under the repealed Act, he added.
After hearing the case, the bench questioned the Advocate General BS Prasad as to how the government would receive applications under the Act, 1971 which had been repealed. The AG urged the court to adjourn the hearing. The bench posted the matter to Wednesday for further hearing.
HC questions encroachments of Wakf Board properties
Expressing displeasure with the functioning of the State Wakf Board, a division bench of the Telangana High Court, on Tuesday, directed the chief executive officer of the Wakf Board to appear before it on November 16 to explain its inability to protect its own properties in the State. Out of the existing 723 Muslim graveyards in Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) limits, there are encroachments in 86 graveyards but only five FIRs have been filed against the illegal encroachers. It is the fundamental duty of the Wakf Board to protect its properties, the bench pointed out.
The bench of Chief Justice Raghvendra Singh Chauhan and Justice B Vijaysen Reddy passed this order in batch PILs filed seeking direction to the State government to conduct survey for identifying the Wakf lands being utilised for Muslim graveyards in Telangana and to protect the Wakf properties from illegal encroachments.
Not satisfied with the contents of the report submitted by the Wakf Board, the bench said that there was a need to take concrete steps against those who have encroached upon the property which was dedicated to Allah the almighty. It seems that the Board is merrily sleeping over the alleged encroachments of its property, the bench observed and summoned the Board CEO to explain the inability to protect the subject properties throughout the State. The bench posted the matter to November 16 for hearing.