High Court: Evict traders from Palani girivalam path

Arun Swaminathan, from Karaikudi in Sivaganga district, in his petition filed before the High Court Bench, had claimed that the Thai Poosam function was one of the important event at Dhandayudhapani Temple on Palani Hills.   

Thousands of devotees from different parts of the state and the county and from across the world would take ‘kavadi’ to the hill shrine and then go on a yatra, a majority of them by food, through the girivalam path around the mountain. In 1974, the girivalam route was handed over to the Hindu Religious & Charitable Endowments department by the state government. 

The State government while hand it over to the department laid a condition that the stretch should not be used for commercial purpose. But, now encroachments have mushroomed on the path and despite many orders were passed in this regard, the encroachments continue to remain in the same place. Arun informed the court that he himself had filed a case earlier in 2013 demanding to remove the encroachments. 

The High Court at that time too passed an order directing the officials to remove the encroachments. Though the order was enforced and encroachments removed, the measure turned out to be a temporary action. A few months later the vendors returned to the same place and were carrying out their business on the girivalam path. Hence the court must direct the State government to remove the encroachment on a permanent basis from the girivalam path, the petitioner appealed. The case was taken up for hearing and after arguments, the Judges ordered the removal of encroachments within two months.