The Andhra Pradesh High Court (HC) has reserved its judgment on the proposed construction of houses for the Economically Weaker Sections (EWS) in R5 zone in Amaravati on Friday.
A full Bench comprising Justices D.V.S.S. Somayajulu, Cheekati Manavendranath Roy, and Ravinath Tilhari were hearing a batch of interlocutory applications that challenged the carrying out of works for the construction of houses in R5 zone during the pendency of writ petitions filed against the modifications made in the Amaravati Master Plan for creating the said residential zone.
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The step assumes significance in the context of the scheduled foundation laying for the construction of houses by Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy on July 24 (Monday).
On Friday, the court asked who would bear the responsibility for the money spent on infrastructure works if the government loses the case. The judges also pointed out that the allotment of house sites itself was subject to the court’s final decision.
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Senior advocates Unnam Muralidhar Rao and Dammalapati Srinivas and advocate K. Indraneel Babu presented the arguments on the Amaravati farmers’ behalf.
They insisted that the allotment of house sites and construction of houses for beneficiaries from other parts of Guntur and Krishna districts was violative of relevant provisions of AP-CRDA Act and Land Pooling Scheme Rules.
The farmers’ basic contention is that the lands constituting R5 zone are meant for development of the capital city and ‘affordable housing’ was available as an in-built requirement in the capital city master plan.
That scheme is meant for specified categories of employees and persons and not for outsiders, the farmers maintained.
