Petitioners challenged the seizure of bore wells without notice. The Court declined to restore the wells as applications were allegedly rejected, but extended an existing interim relief preventing demolition for four weeks.
Petition dismissed; demolition of ponds stayed for four weeks until 23-08-2021.
This page shows the compact analysis of this judgement. The full analysis — procedural history, issue-by-issue holdings with ratio and obiter, advocates, and paragraph-level evidence for every claim — is being added to the record in batches and will appear here when this judgement has been through it.
THE HON’BLE SMT JUSTICE KONGARA VIJAYA LAKSHMI
WRIT PETITION No.2770 OF 2020
ORDER:
This writ petition is filed to declare the action of the respondents 2 to 6 in seizing the bore wells of the petitioners on 13.01.2020 situated in respective aquaculture fields without following the procedure and without issuing any notice, as arbitrary and illegal and a consequential direction was sought to restore the bore wells.
2
and the 6th petitioner obtained provisional permission on 02.06.2014; as per clause 7.15 of G.O.Ms.No.7, the authorities are permitting to use the bore water for supplementing the losses. Challenging the said seizure of the bore wells, the present writ petition is filed.
3
statements were also recorded on 22-10-2019 and the Joint Collector-II along with the members of the District Level and Mandal Level Committees have visited the subject area on 13.11.2019 and examined the ground reality and it was observed that the petitioners and some other farmers involved themselves in unauthorized culture of L.vennamei prawn by using saline water from bore wells which were dug unauthorizedly and that the District Level Committee met on 06.01.2020 and the applications of the 30 defaulting aqua farms were rejected for violation of the guidelines and the Superintendent Engineer, A.P.E.P.D.C.L. was directed to disconnect the power supply of the unauthorized bore wells and the Mandal Task Force Committee was directed to close the unauthorized bore wells. Accordingly, nine (09) power connections were disconnected and twenty (20) bore wells were closed.
4
Government Pleader was directed to file copies of the said rejection order and also directed to produce the record or file an affidavit, but no affidavit is filed by the learned Government Pleader till now. The learned counsel for the petitioners submitted on 18.06.2021 that if the rejection orders are served on them, the petitioners would challenge the same in appropriate proceedings.
5
rejecting the regularization applications of the petitioners, if they are so advised. As there is an interim direction granted on 23.03.2020 directing the respondents 2 to 5 to permit the petitioners for partial restoration of the bore wells to use only once in a week for a period of four hours for refreshing the pond, the respondents are directed not to demolish the ponds for a period of four (04) weeks, i.e. till 23-08-2021, as the learned counsel for the petitioners submits that the prawns are there in the subject tanks.
Miscellaneous petitions pending, if any, in this Writ Petition, shall stand closed.
_______________________________________ JUSTICE KONGARA VIJAYA LAKSHMI
Date: 24-07-2021
Note: Issue CC in three days (B/o) ARR
6
THE HON’BLE SMT JUSTICE KONGARA VIJAYA LAKSHMI
WRIT PETITION No.2770 OF 2020
DATED : 24-07-2021
ARR
3 issues framed by the court
Whether the seizure of bore wells without notice was illegal and recoverable.
Whether the petitioners are entitled to restoration of bore wells despite rejection of their regularization applications.
The extent of the interim relief granted regarding the use of ponds.
PETITIONERS
RESPONDENTS 2 TO 6
KONGARA VIJAYA LAKSHMI
As recorded by the court registry
Judgements on the same questions, provisions and authorities, from every court
