The Madras High Court on Tuesday gave a go ahead to Greater Chennai Corporation to vacate Anna Nagar Tower Club from over 37,000 square feet of land inside Vishweshwaraiah Park, popularly known as Anna Nagar Tower Park, and demolish all buildings constructed by the club and maintain the land as Open Space Reservation (OSR) area.
Justice G. Jayachandran gave the green signal while dismissing a writ petition filed by the club in 2014 seeking a direction to the State Government and Greater Chennai Corporation to consider representations made by it in 2013 for extending the lease of the land as well as the buildings, from where the club was functioning at present, for a period of 99 years.
The judge held that neither the government nor the corporation was obligated to accept the representation made by it nor the club had a right to seek such a direction as a matter of right. He also recorded the submission of the State government that it had no intention to extend the lease period and that it wanted the park property to get restored to the Corporation at the earliest.
Earlier, Additional Advocate General S.R. Rajagopal, representing the Corporation, told the court that in 1989, the then Special Officer of Chennai Corporation had decided to lease out 31,992 square feet of vacant land and an auditorium building spread over 5,872 square feet to the petitioner club. However, it was subject to a lease deed being executed and registered.
Subsequently, in 1991, the Corporation fixed a monthly rent of ₹7,769 for a period of three years for the auditorium building alone. Though the club took possession of the building as well as the land, it did not execute or register any lease deed. Further, it also put up illegal constructions on the vacant land and created various facilities such as a shuttlecock court.
Hence, in 2011, the Corporation initiated eviction proceedings and in 2012 proceedings were issued demanding damages to the tune of ₹48.85 lakh for the unauthorised use of the properties. In September 2012, the then Estate Officer also passed an eviction order directing the club to vacate the premises and hand it over to the Corporation within seven days.
However, on appeal, a city civil court stayed the operation of the eviction order after the club remitted the damages. After about five years, that appeal also ended up being dismissed on October 20, 2017. Therefore, at present, the club had no right to seek a direction to the government and the corporation to consider its representation for extension of lease period, he argued.
