Tamil Nadu - Madurai   

Disputed cemetery land near Periyar bus stand belongs to Govt: Collector

Staff Reporter

Bench adjourns the matter and says that meanwhile no further construction should take place at the site

MADURAI: About 48858 square feet of disputed land near the Periyar bus stand here belongs to the Government and the Roman Catholic Diocese has no right to put up construction on the property except maintaining a cemetery spread over 11480 square feet, according to the Madurai Collector, D. Raajendiran.

The Special Government Pleader (SGP) made the submission before the Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court on a public interest litigation moved by R. Somasundaram of Madurai. The petitioner had alleged that the Diocese was "illegally" constructing a church in the disputed land.

Recording the statement made by the SGP, a Division Bench comprising Justice K.P. Sivasubramaniam and Justice S.K. Krishnan adjourned the matter by four weeks to enable the Collector to file his counter affidavit. In the meantime, no further construction should take place at the site, the Bench directed.

In his instructions to the SGP, the Collector said the Collectorate, on March 12, 1935 and November 24, 1943, had allotted one acre 36600 square feet of land in four different survey numbers to the Roman Catholic Mission, Tiruchirapalli Diocese, for proper maintenance of cemeteries situated in the land.

However, the then Government made it clear that the land should not be used for any other purpose other than maintaining the cemeteries and it might reoccupy the land, if any building was constructed without prior permission of the Collector.

During 1987, a dispute arose over 48858 square feet of the total allotted land. Since nearly 37378 square feet of the disputed land was lying vacant with the burial ground spread over the rest, the Madurai Corporation proposed to take possession of the vacant land for extension of Periyar bus stand and compensate the Diocese with an alternative site. Though both the parties agreed to the proposal, the State Government did not concur with them and on March 16, 1992 ordered the Diocese to part with the land, since it was classified as "Government burial poromboke," on collection of market value of the property.

The Divisional Revenue Officer was also instructed to send a proposal to lease out the 11480 square feet of cemetery land to the Diocese.

The Diocese challenged the G.O. and the Madras High Court on January 28, 1999 allowed the writ petition with a direction to the Government to issue a show cause notice to the Diocese before reacquiring the property. The Government moved a writ appeal against the order, but thereafter, on being informed that the Corporation did not require the land following the construction of the integrated bus stand at Mattuthavani, it withdrew the appeal petition on May 28, 2001.

Pointing out that following media reports, he issued show cause notice to the Diocese on June 6, calling for explanation as to why the land should not be re-occupied by the Government for constructing a `meditation shrine' without his knowledge, the Collector said the Government was taking proper action against defaulters.

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