The Hindu : `Expose' on encroachments triggers fiery spat

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, Apr 23, 2003

Southern States

Southern States - Tamil Nadu-Chennai

`Expose' on encroachments triggers fiery spat

By Our Special Correspondent

Chennai April 22. The HR and CE Minister, P.C. Ramasamy, today caused a stir and triggered a fiery spat in the Assembly, reeling off a list of Opposition functionaries who had encroached on temple land.

The Minister's campaign to "expose" the Opposition began with a swipe at the former Chennai Mayor and DMK MLA, M.K. Stalin, who, he alleged, had not taken any step to act on complaints of encroachments on the land belonging to the Agastheeswarar temple on the Valluvar Kottam road here by two individuals.

"While Mr. Stalin backed the encroachers, who had obtained fake pattas with an eye on benefits, the Chief Minister, Jayalalithaa, immediately ordered the removal of the encroachments when the matter was brought to her notice".

Amid thumping of desks by the ruling party MLAs, the Minister said the Government had secured a piece of temple land on Chamiers Road from a DMK functionary. As the DMK is boycotting the Assembly session, there was no protest from the Opposition benches. But trouble began, when the Minister said a PMK MLA was "enjoying" a 39,531-sq.ft plot and a 2179-s1.ft building of the Kasiviswanatha temple on Poonamallee High Road here for a monthly rental or Rs. 400. "... The MLA belongs to the PMK, which has betrayed Puratchi Thalaivi Amma. Does the PMK have the locus standi to speak against Amma when its MLA is using temple land even without paying the measly rental for years?" Immediately, cacophony gripped the House as the PMK frontbenchers, G.K. Mani and I. Ganesan, strongly objected.

"We won because of you. And, you won because of us." Mr. Mani retorted, even as Mr. Ganesan asked the Minister to come out with a full list of encroachers including those belonging to the ruling party. "Has none in the AIADMK encroached on temple land?" shouted the PMK MLAs.

Unmindful of the din, the Minister went ahead with naming another PMK functionary, who had taken a 15.6 acres of temple land on lease at Vedaranyam. The Congress and the CPI too were not spared. A Congress MP was illegally occupying a 5.19-acre land at Vedaranyam and the CPI office building was located on the Marundeeswarar temple land at Thiruthuraipoondi. Before he wound up his litany of charges, almost all Opposition MLAs were on their feet, strongly objecting to the Minister's "baseless allegations".

Names expunged

Amid a chorus of demand for releasing the entire list of encroachers, the Congress Legislature party leader, S.R. Balasubramaniam, asked how the Minister could name individuals who were not present in the House. As the din increased, the Speaker, K. Kalimuthu, said the Minister had shown proof for the charges and "they are correct". However, he said the names of the individuals would be expunged.

But the Opposition was not pacified and the CPI floor leader, G.Palanichamy, dared the Minister to resign if his charges were wrong. "I am ready to resign if your charges are true. But will you quit if your facts are wrong", he asked. Amid shouts and counter-shouts, Mr. Ramasamy asked whether a Minister had no right to state the truth in the Assembly.

Countering, Mr.Balasubramaniam, flaunting a newspaper, asked the Minister whether he would remove the encroachment on 7000 acres of temple land near Chennai which had been illegally occupied for centuries now.

But, Mr. Ramasamy brushed aside the remark, saying, the Congress leader was levelling charges to derive political advantage. However, the Opposition frontbenchers insisted that the Minister release the names of AIADMK functionaries who had encroached on temple land.

Finally, the Minister declared that the Government would remove encroachments on temple land even if it was occupied by the AIADMK men.

The din subsided and the Chief Minister entered the House.

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