In order to ascertain the genuineness of persons to whom properties on Arapalayam main road, Melmadurai in Madurai were assigned in 2010, the Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court has directed the Madurai Commissioner of Police to conduct an inquiry.
The court was hearing the batch of petitions that sought a direction to the authorities concerned to restore the petitioners’ possession of their respective plots.
Justice B. Pugalendhi directed the CoP to ascertain as to whether the persons were fictitious. The Madurai Collector and the Commissioner of Police were directed to inspect the property and file a report. If there was any occupation without authority, the same should be removed and the property handed over to the Commissioner of Police.
The court observed that the case was a classic example as how influential persons could usurp government property with the help of public servants. Though the petitions were pending from 2017, the authorities have not even bothered to file their counter affidavit.
The government had lost valuable properties by not defending the cases properly before courts. In most of the cases, orders had been passed by courts without knowing the exact facts involved in the cases. The departments were not filing counter affidavits and appeals within a reasonable time. Appeals filed with delay were also not followed up and therefore, the valuable properties were allowed to be in possession of encroachers, the court observed.
The court directed the Madurai Collector to order an enquiry and find out the persons who were responsible for non-filing of the counter affidavit in the petitions and the Commissioner of Land Administration was directed to file a report as to how the responsibility and accountability were fixed on revenue officials. The court posted the matter for hearing on November 21.