Madras High Court
Lakshmamma vs State Rep. By on 24 July, 2025
Author: M.Sundar
Bench: M.Sundar
2025:MHC:1816
W.P.No.27880 of 2025
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT MADRAS
DATED : 24.07.2025
CORAM
THE HONOURABLE MR.JUSTICE M.SUNDAR
and
THE HONOURABLE MR.JUSTICE HEMANT CHANDANGOUDAR
W.P.No.27880 of 2025
and
W.M.P.No.31229 of 2025 in W.P. No.27880 of 2025
1.Lakshmamma
2.Nagaraj
3.Jayaraman
4.Ellamma
5.Venkattamma
6.Subramani
7.Munivenkattappa
8.Govindaraj
9.Kaveri
10.Lakshmanan ... Petitioners
Vs.
1.State rep. by
Additional Chief Secretary,
Revenue and Disaster Management,
Fort St. George, Chennai - 600 009.
2.The District Collector,
Krishnagiri.
3.The Sub Collector,
Hosur.
4.The Tahsildar,
Hosur.
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W.P.No.27880 of 2025
5.The Revenue Inspector,
Hosur, Krishnagiri District.
6.The Village Administrative Officer,
Chennathur Village,
Hosur Taluk, Krishnagiri District. ... Respondents
Writ Petition filed under Article 226 of The Constitution of
India praying to issue a Writ of Certiorarified Mandamus to call for the
entire records relating to impugned proceedings dated 16.07.2025
passed in Na.Ka.14599/2023(H3) on the file of the second respondent,
quash the limb of direction given to fourth respondent to evict the
petitioner within a period of one week from the property to an extent
of 3.66 acres in Survey No.1012/1 of Chennathur Village, Hosur Taluk,
Krishnagiri District, consequently direct the fourth respondent not to
dispossess the petitioners in the above property till the disposal of
appeal dated 15.07.2025 (which was served on 18.07.2025) pending
before the third respondent.
For Petitioners : Mr.R.Ezhilarasan
For Respondents : Mr.T.K.Saravanan,
Additional Government Pleader
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W.P.No.27880 of 2025
ORDER
[Order of the Court was made by M.SUNDAR, J.,] Mr.R.Ezhilarasan, learned counsel on record for ten writ petitioners submits that subject matter of captioned main 'Writ Petition' (hereinafter 'WP' for the sake of brevity) is 'land admeasuring an extent of 3.66 acres or thereabouts comprised in Survey No.1012/1 of Chennathur Village, Hosur Taluk, Krishnagiri District' (hereinafter 'said land' for the sake of convenience and clarity).
2. Learned counsel for writ petitioners submits that the writ petitioners made a request for issuance of patta, there was delay, necessitating the writ petitioners to come to this Court by way of an earlier writ petition being W.P.No.22537 of 2025 along with W.M.P. No.25360 of 2025 thereat. Learned counsel submits that this earlier writ petition along with WMP thereat came to be disposed of by this Bench in and by an order dated 24.06.2025 inter-alia recording the stated position of the learned State counsel that a decision will be taken by R2 herein within four weeks.
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3. Be that as it may, the writ petitioners are also simultaneously facing RoE (Removal of Encroachment) proceedings under 'The Tamil Nadu Land Encroachment Act, 1905 (Tamil Nadu Act III of 1905)' (hereinafter 'said 1905 Act' for the sake of brevity) and the same has culminated in an 'order dated 16.07.2025 bearing reference Na.Ka.14599/2023(H3) made by R2 [District Collector, Krishnagiri]' (hereinafter 'impugned order' for the sake of convenience and clarity).
4. In and vide the impugned order, while the Appellate Authority/ R2 has dismissed the writ petitioners' statutory appeal, the Appellate Authority has also given a directive to R4 [Tahsildar, Hosur] to remove the encroachment within one week and submit a report. This has now become the eye of the storm or in other words, epicentre of the captioned WP.
5. Learned counsel for the writ petitioners submits that the impugned order was served on all the ten writ petitioners yesterday (23.07.2025). The writ petitioners intend to file a statutory revision under Section 10-A of said 1905 Act, writ petitioners have 30 days time to do so vide Section 11(2) of said 1905 Act but the aforereferred directive of the Appellate Authority which we have described as Page Nos.4/10 https://www.mhc.tn.gov.in/judis ( Uploaded on: 29/07/2025 05:00:47 pm ) W.P.No.27880 of 2025 'epicentre of the captioned WP' virtually nullifies and neutralizes writ petitioner's right of revision. That has necessitated the captioned WP by way of urgent lunch motion is learned counsel's further say [learned counsel is before us on VC (video conferencing) platform].
6. Issue notice to respondents.
7. Mr.T.K.Saravanan, learned Additional Government Pleader accepts notice for all six respondents and very fairly submits that the impugned order and more particularly the directive qua RoE will not be put into motion until 30 days time available for the writ petitioners for preferring revision lapses. This by itself makes the legal drill at hand a fairly simple exercise, inter-alia owing to this reason and considering the position that the captioned WP is vastly de-scoped, captioned main WP is taken up in the Admission Board with the consent of learned counsel on both sides.
8. Before we proceed further, we find that the prayer in the captioned WP is for certiorarified mandamus and discussion thus far pertains to certiorari limb of the prayer. Mandamus limb though described to be consequential qua certiorari limb, we find that the Page Nos.5/10 https://www.mhc.tn.gov.in/judis ( Uploaded on: 29/07/2025 05:00:47 pm ) W.P.No.27880 of 2025 same is really not consequential, however, considering the interest of the writ petitioners, without harping on by part technicalities we examine the mandamus limb too. Mandamus limb seeks disposal of a statutory appeal dated 15.07.2025 pending with R3 being a statutory appeal under Section 12 of 'The Tamil Nadu Patta Passbook Act, 1983 (Tamil Nadu Act 4 of 1986)' (hereinafter 'Patta Passbook Act' for the sake of convenience and clarity) {to be noted, Section 12 read with Rule 14 of The Tamil Nadu Patta Passbook Rules, 1987 thereat). It is further to be noted that this appeal is directed against rejection of writ petitioners' request for patta by R4 vide order dated 13.06.2025. As regards this mandamus limb, learned State counsel on instructions submits that the statutory appeal will be disposed of by R3 as expeditiously as the official business of R3 permits but in any event within eight weeks from today i.e., on or before 08.09.2025. This submission makes it a simple task to give a closure to the mandamus limb too. In other words, the mandamus limb will be given a closure by recording the stated position of the learned State counsel.
9. In the light of the narrative, discussion and dispositive reasoning thus far, the following order is made: Page Nos.6/10
https://www.mhc.tn.gov.in/judis ( Uploaded on: 29/07/2025 05:00:47 pm ) W.P.No.27880 of 2025 9.1 Certiorari limb is not acceded to. The impugned order of R2 is not dislodged/quashed by issue of writ of certiorari but it shall be kept in abeyance till 22.08.2025 to enable the writ petitioners to file statutory revision under Section 10-A of said 1905 Act;
9.2 It is open to the writ petitioners to file statutory revision under Section 10-A of said 1905 Act together with stay petition under Section 10-B of said 1905 Act on or before 22.08.2025;
9.3 If statutory revision along with stay petition under Sections 10-A and 10-B of said 1905 Act respectively are filed by writ petitioners on or before 22.08.2025, the stay petition under Section 10-B shall be disposed of as expeditiously as the business of revisional authority permits but in any event within three weeks from 22.08.2025 i.e., on or before 12.09.2025; Page Nos.7/10
https://www.mhc.tn.gov.in/judis ( Uploaded on: 29/07/2025 05:00:47 pm ) W.P.No.27880 of 2025 9.4 Coercive action (if any and if that be so) shall be subject to and depending on the outcome of the stay petition;
9.5 As regards the mandamus limb, we record the stated position of learned State counsel that the statutory appeal of the writ petitioners dated 15.07.2025 which is now under active consideration of Appellate Authority viz., R3 will be disposed of on or before 18.09.2025;
9.6 All questions are left open and all the rights of writ petitioners and State are left open for being canvassed in the statutory revision under said 1905 Act and statutory appeal under Patta Passbook Act.
10. Ergo, the sequitur is, captioned WP is disposed of as closed in the aforesaid manner albeit with preservation of rights, contentions and directives as well as recording of stated positions as captured supra. In the light of our directive qua keeping the impugned order in abeyance and coercive action being subject to outcome of the stay petition before the revisional authority, captioned Writ Miscellaneous Page Nos.8/10 https://www.mhc.tn.gov.in/judis ( Uploaded on: 29/07/2025 05:00:47 pm ) W.P.No.27880 of 2025 Petition (WMP) has become otiose and the same is disposed of as closed having become otiose. There shall be no order as to costs.
(M.S.,J.) (H.C.,J.)
24.07.2025
Index : Yes
Neutral Citation : Yes
mmi
To
1.The Additional Chief Secretary to Government, Revenue and Disaster Management, Fort St. George, Chennai - 600 009.
2.The District Collector, Krishnagiri.
3.The Sub Collector, Hosur.
4.The Tahsildar, Hosur.
5.The Revenue Inspector, Hosur, Krishnagiri District.
6.The Village Administrative Officer, Chennathur Village, Hosur Taluk, Krishnagiri District.
Page Nos.9/10 https://www.mhc.tn.gov.in/judis ( Uploaded on: 29/07/2025 05:00:47 pm ) W.P.No.27880 of 2025 M.SUNDAR, J., and HEMANT CHANDANGOUDAR, J., mmi W.P.No.27880 of 2025 24.07.2025 Page Nos.10/10 https://www.mhc.tn.gov.in/judis ( Uploaded on: 29/07/2025 05:00:47 pm )