Hyderabad: Telangana high court on Monday restrained HYDRAA from taking any coercive action on 26.03 acres of land in Bahadurguda village near Shamshabad, where farmers alleged that officials fenced off their land and prevented them from carrying out agricultural activities.Justice B Vijaysen Reddy issued the interim direction while hearing a lunch motion petition filed by Jakkidi Yadi Reddy and three others. The order will remain in force until the next hearing.The disputed land forms part of nearly 650 acres being acquired by the state govt for the proposed bullet train project.Senior counsel V Raghunath, appearing for the petitioners, told the court that the farmers had been in possession of the land since the late 1980s after purchasing it through registered sale deeds. He alleged that on July 18, HYDRAA personnel entered the land with bulldozers and JCBs, demolished gates and fenced the entire extent, preventing the owners from accessing their fields.The petitioners claimed they were cultivating various crops on the land. “But HYDRAA teams acting like dictators have barged into the lands with heavy machinery and erected fencing, creating an emergency situation among the farmers,” Raghunath argued.Opposing the plea, advocate general A Sudershan Reddy told the court that the petitioners had failed to produce valid documents proving ownership. He maintained that the land belonged to the govt and had been under its protection since 1950. He further submitted that HYDRAA’s action pertained to a different survey number altogether.“This is how innocuous orders are obtained and put the state in trouble,” he said.Meanwhile, 85 more farmers from Bahadurguda have moved the high court alleging similar action by HYDRAA, police and revenue officials. Claiming ownership through valid documents, they said their lands were fenced and structures demolished despite long-standing cultivation and irrigation facilities. Their petitions are expected to be heard shortly.
