The allegations of land encroachment by former Devikulam MLA S. Rajendran have turned into a slanging match with Mr. Rajendran criticising the Revenue department’s move to evict him from his ‘home’ and the department stating that he had no claim over the land.
Mr. Rajendran alleged that the Revenue department had issued a notice asking him to vacate the home he lived within seven days. The department officials, however, confirmed that the eviction notice asked Mr. Rajendran to vacate nine cents of encroached land and a house at Ekka Nagar, near Munnar.
“Mr. Rajendran’s survey number for the nine cents of land was shown as 844/A and was said to be in his name and that of his wife Latha Rajendran. But a Revenue department survey revealed that the land was included in survey number 912. Following the findings, Mr. Rajendran submitted an application to change the survey number. But the Revenue department denied it and issued notice to vacate the land and the building,” a top Revenue department official told The Hindu.
The Revenue department claimed it never issued a notice to Mr. Rajendran to vacate the home that he was living in. The seven-day notice was for the encroached nine cents and the small building, the official said.
According to sources, Mr. Rajendran had rented the house for the past five years to a family, which vacated it a few months ago. This, the family claimed was after a threat they faced from Mr. Rajendran. Athira Jayan, whose family had taken the house for rent, said Mr. Rajendran and his wife attacked her and her kin to vacate the land. “After the repeated physical attacks from Mr. Rajendran and his family, we finally vacated and moved to Adimaly,” said Ms. Jayan.
When contacted, Mr. Rajendran denied the allegations and said, “From 2003, it is my family that is residing at the home at Ekka Nagar. Terming the Revenue department move unfounded, he said the department issued three notices, including one to his wife alleging that she encroached 4.5 cents of land at Ekka Nagar.
“The former Electricity Minister M.M. Mani was in charge of the district. Why did he fail to solve the land issues at Ekka Nagar,“ he asked.
The issue, which is on a simmer, adds to the volatile environment in Munnar, already marred by controversies and recurrent rough weather.
Published - November 27, 2022 08:34 pm IST
