Supreme Court Upholds Telangana Government’s Ownership of 550 Acres in Miyapur
The Freedom Press
Hyderabad Oct 30: In a major legal victory for the Telangana government, the Supreme Court has upheld the state’s ownership of approximately 550 acres and 39 guntas of prime land in Miyapur, Serilingampally mandal of Rangareddy district, bringing an end to a prolonged legal battle spanning nearly 23 years.
A Supreme Court bench comprising Justices M.M. Sundresh and Satish Chandra Sharma on Thursday dismissed a batch of appeals filed by private individuals challenging the April 16, 2003, judgment of the then Andhra Pradesh High Court. The High Court had upheld the government’s ownership of the disputed land in Survey Nos. 100 and 101.
The disputed property comprises 277 acres and five guntas in Survey No. 100 and 273 acres and 34 guntas in Survey No. 101.
The private claimants had sought recognition of their ownership rights based on historical grants, inheritance claims and revenue records. However, the Supreme Court held that they had failed to establish valid ownership. It also observed that certain revenue entries relied upon by the claimants were fraudulent and could not confer legal title to government land.
The court noted that the disputed properties had been classified as government land in historical revenue records dating back to the 1912 survey. It further held that the abolition of jagirs in 1949 resulted in the vesting of the relevant lands in the government and that the historical grants did not establish private ownership.
The dispute had earlier been examined by the Special Court constituted under the Andhra Pradesh Land Grabbing (Prohibition) Act, which ruled in favour of the government in 1997. The High Court subsequently upheld the findings in 2003.
