Hyderabad: Telangana high court on Thursday sought to know whether any action had been initiated against govt officials who allegedly approved illegal constructions and sanctioned civic amenities such as water and electricity connections for structures that were later demolished by HYDRAA on the grounds that they were illegally built on govt land.A vacation bench of Justice Nagesh Bheempaka raised the query while hearing petitions filed by more than 20 residents of Patelguda village in Ameenpur on the outskirts of Hyderabad. The petitioners alleged that HYDRAA demolished their houses in Sept 2024 without issuing any notice, rendering them homeless.The petitioners told the court that a survey conducted later pursuant to high court directions had concluded that the lands in question were patta lands. Despite this, municipal authorities were allegedly refusing to grant building permissions. The petitioners sought directions from the court to the authorities to issue the required permissions.The bench directed the respondents to file counters and posted the matter for further hearing on June 15.Appearing for the petitioners, counsel R Chandrashekar Reddy argued that the residents had earlier secured protection from the high court after repeated attempts by authorities to evict them from their houses and lands. Despite the court’s protection, HYDRAA allegedly demolished their properties.“When the petitioners showed court orders, they (HYDRAA) tore them down, saying they are ready to face the contempt of the court but will not leave the place without demolishing the houses. They demolished the houses without following the due process of law nor respecting the high court’s order,” the counsel said.He submitted photographs of the demolition and argued that the lands had remained fenced off since then. He further told the court that a survey conducted pursuant to high court orders had established that the petitioners’ properties were not located on govt land. However, when they approached authorities in May 2025 seeking building permissions, their applications were allegedly kept pending without any action.The counsel also urged the court to direct authorities to remove the fencing around the petitioners’ properties. “There is no action on any official who gave permissions, registered these lands, but the petitioners are enduring a never-ending suffering,” alleged the counsel.Recording the submissions, the court adjourned the matter for further hearing.
