The Supreme Court docket on Friday dismissed a petition difficult the Andhra Pradesh High Court judgment which quashed the 2021 felony case towards Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu and former minister Ponguru Narayana in reference to alleged irregularities within the land pooling scheme for Amaravati.
A bench comprising Chief Justice of India Surya Kant, Justice Joymalya Bagchi and Justice V Mohana refused to entertain the problem made by Alla Rama Krishna Reddy, former YSRCP MLA, towards the July 15 judgment of the Andhra Pradesh Excessive Court docket which quashed the proceedings towards Naidu and Narayana.
The bench, whereas refusing to intervene with the quashing of the case towards them, clarified that the Excessive Court docket’s judgment may have no bearing on different instances, which must be decided on their very own impartial deserves.
Senior Advocate Ranjit Kumar, showing for Alla Rama Krishna Reddy, submitted that there have been large-scale irregularities, and concerned land of about 30,000 acres of over 25,000 farmers.
“On the bigger challenge of farmers, we’re with you. No matter they’re entitled to it, we’ll defend,” CJI Surya Kant mentioned. The CJI nonetheless identified that the current felony proceedings had been on the occasion of a political rival and no farmer had come ahead. The CJI additionally noticed that political battles shouldn’t be fought in court docket.
The FIR, registered below the Prevention of Corruption Act on March 12, 2021, adopted a grievance by then Mangalagiri MLA Alla Rama Krishna Reddy over the land pooling scheme introduced as per a 2016 Authorities order. Underneath the land pooling scheme, the Andhra Pradesh authorities acquired agricultural land from farmers for the event of Amaravati, the proposed capital metropolis, in return for developed residential and industrial plots. Underneath the scheme, farmers had been to obtain 1,000 sq. yards of residential land and 250 sq. yards of economic land for each acre of agricultural land surrendered for the capital venture. As per information, 28,181 landowners throughout 25 villages had contributed 35,215 acres of personal agricultural land for the event of Amaravati.
The scheme was offered as an alternative choice to standard obligatory land acquisition, with landowners receiving developed plots within the proposed capital in return for pooling their agricultural holdings.
The grievance alleged that the federal government had illegally amended the land pooling framework to increase its advantages to sure classes of assigned land, thereby enabling personal people and alleged encroachers to acquire developed plots. It alleged that the transfer precipitated losses to poor and marginalised landholders and conferred illegal advantages on influential people. It was alleged that farmers, significantly from SC, ST and different weaker sections, had been misled or pressured into parting with their assigned lands and that middlemen obtained agreements or sale deeds by exploiting fears over the way forward for their land.
The Excessive Court docket’s order famous that the APCRDA Act, 2014, launched land pooling as an alternative choice to obligatory acquisition.
The Excessive Court docket discovered that the prosecution was based considerably on official policy-making and govt selections. Justice Y Lakshmana Rao of the Excessive Court docket held that the idea of treating authentic governmental coverage selections and issuance of presidency orders as a felony conspiracy was constitutionally untenable. The Court docket famous that the selections regarding Amaravati had been taken by way of governmental processes and had obtained legislative endorsement. The Court docket finally held that the FIR didn’t stand on agency authorized floor and was vitiated by mala fides and political vendetta and quashed the proceedings (Crime No. 5 of 2021 registered the CID at Amaravathi, Mangalagiri.) towards Naidu and Narayana of their entirety.
Case : ALLA RAMA KRISHNA REDDY Vs THE STATE OF ANDHRA PRADESH | SLP(Crl) No. 14193/2026
