Chennai

Justice N Kirubakaran who had earlier taken suo motu cognizance of the need to protect the wetlands while dealing with a anticipatory bail plea in connection with fabricating documents pertaining to as much as 66.70 acres in Pallikaranai, said “In spite of knowing that the properties dealt with by them were declared as wetlands, the registering authorities have deliberately registered the documents, thereby causing loss to the government while enabling the parties to knock away the wetlands.” 

Also, directing the state to provide details about the officers who registered the documents, the executors and beneficiaries of the documents, the judge sought a report on the action taken against those officers involved and whether they had retired or were in service. He also directed the government to furnish at the earliest a register of Pallikaranai village, its map, memoirs, relevant extract of resettlement, survey and land register. 

Justice Kirubakaran had on October 28, 2015 noticed that marshlands were either fraudulently or by design encroached upon and alienated illegally by land grabbers with the help of influential officials, men with muscle and money power by clubbing parts of the wetlands with some other properties which are in various parts of the state. He had subsequently directed the registration authorities not to register any wetlands of Pallikaranai anywhere in the state.

The judge in his order on Monday also directed the officials of Forest Department, CMDA, Registration Department, and Metro Water to convene a meeting within three weeks and submit a proposal on fencing the available wetland so that further encroachment could be prevented. 

The Judge also directed the officials to submit the details of the amount to be spent for the fencing enabling the court to direct the government to allot funds in a bid to safe guard the remaining wetlands. The case has been posted for further hearing to April 17.

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