Dalveer Bhandari, J. - (1.) This appeal is directed against the judgment dated 15th September, 2005 of the High Court of Andhra Pradesh at Hyderabad in writ petition No. 3646 of 2003. In the said writ petition, the order passed by the Special Court under the Andhra Pradesh Land Grabbing (Prohibition) Act, 1982 at Hyderabad in Land Grabbing Code No. 141 of 1989 dated 10.6.2002 was challenged.
(2.) The main grievance of the State of Andhra Pradesh in this appeal is that the case of the appellant was not decided on merit either by the Special Court or by the High Court. The Special Court decided the case entirely relying on a short order of this court in State of Andhra Pradesh and Others v. Merit Enterprises and Others (1998) 8 SCC 749. According to the appellant, the Special Court committed a serious error in invoking the concept of res judicata in the facts of this case.
(3.) In the impugned judgment, the High Court recorded the submissions of the appellant. The learned counsel for the appellant relied on the findings of the High Court on this aspect. Relevant findings are reproduced as under : "The learned Special Court, according to the learned Government Pleader for Revenue, committed a mistake by holding that it was a case of res judicata, as respondents 22 to 59 were not parties to that judgment. It may be true that the judgment in M/s. Merit Enterprises v. State of AP may not operate as res judicata, but at the same time, we agree with the learned counsel for the respondents that it was a piece of evidence in terms of Section 13 of the Evidence Act (1 of 1872). Once the Court had decided, and the decision had been upheld even by the Supreme Court that applicant-State Government was not the owner of the property in question, that judgment could be used as evidence.";