Raze ECI church on govt land: HC

A division bench comprising Justice M Sathyanarayanan and Justice R Hemalatha gave the direction on a contempt petition moved by one V Balachandran, alleging wilful disobedience and non-compliance by the Land Administration Secretary of the order dated June 19, 2019, which had directed the Revisional Authority to dispose of the revision filed by ECI challenging the demolition order.

After ECI encroached the land and constructed a church, a representation was submitted in 2002 to the Kancheepuram Collector, who in turn directed the Tambaram Tahsildar to evict and report within 48 hours.

In the legal battle that followed, the court had held in 2010 and 2012 that the church has to be removed. Despite that, and even after the latest order in 2019, the encroachment was not removed, said the petition.

After perusing the proceedings by the Collector, Land Administration Commissioner and the order of the Revisional Authority dated January 8, the bench led by Justice Sathyanarayanan said: “The ECI, with absolute impunity, had encroached upon the land belonging to the government and not stopping with that, has also put up a wholly unauthorised structure in the form of a religious structure.”

Directing its demolition, the bench asked the police to provide protection for removing it.

The bench also directed the Pallavaram Tahsildar to verify religious and other structures on government land, and file a status report on the removal of encroachments and demolish unauthorised structures.

The plea was posted to March 6 for reportingcompliance.