The Telangana High Court has issued an interim order restraining the state government from dispossessing landowners in Gandipet whose properties are earmarked for acquisition under the Musi Rejuvenation Project. The directive came as relief to property owners who had challenged the acquisition process on multiple legal grounds.
Justice K Sharath passed the restraint order while hearing petitions filed by five landowners contesting the acquisition of 9.08 acres in Dargah Khaleez Khan village. The petitioners argued that their properties had been wrongly exempted from the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013. They claimed that authorities were proceeding with the acquisition without giving due consideration to their objections.
Senior counsel K Vivek Reddy, representing the petitioners, informed the court that the properties in question are located within a bio-conservation zone and situated approximately 500 metres from the Himayathsagar reservoir. The petitioners raised serious concerns about procedural lapses, alleging that mandatory social impact assessments were bypassed and no proper establishment of public interest or urgency was demonstrated. They further contended that their objections were rejected mechanically without proper examination, and no detailed project report was made available in the public domain. The landowners also pointed out that authorities were attempting to acquire a strip of 100-200 metres despite specifying a 50-metre riverfront buffer zone.
Additional Advocate General T Rajinikanth Reddy opposed the grant of interim relief and requested time to file a comprehensive counter-affidavit. He maintained that all statutory requirements were being followed in the acquisition process. The government’s counsel gave an assurance to the court that the landowners would not be dispossessed until a proper inquiry into the matter was completed.
The court has adjourned the matter for two weeks and directed the state government to submit a detailed response addressing the concerns raised by the petitioners. The government has been asked to file its counter-affidavit explaining the procedural compliance and justification for the land acquisition under the Musi Rejuvenation Project.
