It is a major setback to Telangana government. The Hyderabad High Court issued a stay order on land acquisition for projects under GO 123. About 100 farmers of Medak district have challenged the GO 123 which allowing the government to take away lands.
Earlier, the government issued GO 123 for the acquisition of land for various projects including Mallanna Sagar, Palamuru, Ranga Reddy lift irrigation, etc. Farmers from Medak, Mahabub Nagar, Karim Nagar and other districts filed petitions challenging the GO and sought the stay orders on the GO 123. They complained that the terms of payment of compensation for their lands as per GO 123 were against their interests and it was forcible acquisition. After hearing the arguments from the both sides, the High Court bench observed that the GO 123 needs to be further examined and asked the government not to proceed with land acquisition for any project under the GO in question. The government is allowed to acquire land under the previous ordinance of 2013. The court will take up a detailed hearing before a final verdict is delivered.