Hyderabad: The Hyderabad High Court on Friday reserved orders on an in-house motion moved by farmers from Gowliwada village of Peddapally district alleging that the authorities were forcibly dispossessing them for construction of Sundilla Barrage under the Kaleswaram lift irrigation scheme.
Justice Shameem Akhter, a vacation judge, heard the petition by G. Venkat Reddy and five others at his residence and reserved orders for Saturday.
B. Rachana Reddy, counsel for the petitioner, submitted that the High Court had earlier ordered the authorities not to dispossess the farmers from their 241 acres till further orders.
Despite the orders, the authorities were forcibly evicting the farmers and digging their lands with heavy machinery and issuing FIRs alleging that the farmers were obstructing construction of the pump house, Ms Reddy said.
S. Sharath Kumar, special counsel for the government, said that the pleas were baseless.
He said that the petitioners were moving plea after plea before the single judge and the division bench on the same issue.
Counsel said most of the farmers handed over their lands and only 10 had refused to do so.
Mr Sharath Kumar said that they have already passed the compensation award and Rs19 crore has been deposited.
He said that the work being stopped for over two months would cause burden on the exchequer.
