TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
2002 (11) TMI 804
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....nment of Andhra Pradesh. The short facts for disposal of these appeals are as under : The Government of Andhra Pradesh had taken a policy decision to encourage the functioning of Newspaper Concerns and Educational Institutions, which were finding it difficult to find land within the State at affordable prices. A large tract of 72 acres of vacant land in Survey No.403 corresponding to T.S. No.2 of Shaikpet Village of Hyderabad District was owned by the State Government. Out of this land, an extent of 43 acres had been allotted to the Hyderabad Urban Development Authority (HUDA) for the purpose of development of residential plots, which could be sold and proceeds thereof utilized for the formation of the Necklace road around Hussain Sag....
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....ssigned lands and for collecting the price from the assignees. The District Collector of Hyderabad sent a report fixing the value of the land at Rs. 200/- per sq. yard. At that rate, each of the assignees was called upon to deposit Rs. 19,36,000/-. M/s. Balaji Administrative Services Pvt. Ltd., M/s. Maharishi Publishers Pvt. Ltd. and M/s. Creative Industries Pvt. Ltd., each deposited the said amount of Rs. 19,36,000/- on 29.11.1994. However, for some reason, possession of the land was not delivered to the said three assignees though they had complied with all conditions stipulated in the respective Government Orders. In glaring contrast, Roots Public School had been delivered possession even as early as 17.5.1994, although the full price ha....
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....atory treatment on the part of the State Government amounting to infringement of the right to equality guaranteed under Article 14 of the Constitution. The learned Single Judge who heard the writ petitions was satisfied that there was no substance in the contentions urged by the State authorities and HUDA and that there was a clear case of discrimination amounting to infringement of Article 14 was made out and that the writ petitioners were entitled to succeed. By his judgment dated 1st May, 1998, the learned Single Judge after elaborately discussing the facts and the contentions urged, allowed the three writ petitions and directed the State Government to resume the concerned lands and hand over possession of the respective lands to the thr....
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.... undertaken by HUDA and the stand taken by HUDA that it had spent more than Rs. 1 crore and that the lands could not be resumed by the State Government, was untenable. The High Court also rightly took the view that the land originally belonged to the State Government and under Section 20 of the A.P. Urban Area (Development) Act, 1975, the State Government could always resume the land by issuing the appropriate Governmental Orders. Finally, if at all HUDA was aggrieved by the act of the State Government resuming the lands which had been assigned to the aggrieved petitioners, the HUDA should have challenged such orders. HUDA not having challenged the orders of resumption, the orders of resumption became final as far as HUDA was concerned The ....
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....fore the Government was not obliged to honour its commitments. This contention has rightly been repelled by the Division Bench of the High Court by pointing out that the sale of the land was not as a result of any commercial transaction by the State Government, but pursuant to its declared socio-economic policy reflected in the scheme of allotment of land to give incentives to Newspapers Concerns and Educational Institutions. The High Court rightly held that this was an executive act falling within the province of Article 162 and not within the ambit of Article 299 of the Constitution. The material placed on record does clearly indicate that undue favour was shown to Roots Public School and M/s. DOT Publishers as the assigned lands were han....