The Madras High Court has directed the Directorate of Town and Country Planning (DTCP) to remove all encroachments made by Olympia Infra Tech Private Limited at Navalur in Chennai. The court has further ordered demolition of a compound wall along with a gate erected by the real estate developer blocking the public pathway.
Acting Chief Justice T. Raja and Justice D. Bharatha Chakravarthy also directed the DTCP to restore a waterbody which was now being used as a car parking area and ensure public access to it. The orders were passed on a writ petition filed by Mandava Holdings Private Limited, another real estate firm, in 2020.
Disposing of the case now, the first Division Bench directed the revenue as well as local body officials to take physical possession of all Open Space Reserve (OSR) lands, the water body and also the public roads to be provided by Olympia Infra Tech as per the approved plan and declare them as public lands/roads.
The Bench made it clear that necessary changes should be carried out in the revenue records to prevent encroachments in future. The entire exercise of taking physical possession of the OSR lands, public roads and the water body and altering the revenue records must be done within 12 weeks, it ordered.
Appearing on behalf of Mandava Holdings, senior counsel P.S. Raman told the court that the petitioner owns 18.41 acres of land in Navalur. However, its lands were sandwiched between the Buckingham Canal on the eastern side and the property which had been developed by Olympia Infra Tech on the west.
Stating that there was also a pond adjacent to the petitioner’s land, the senior counsel said, Olympia Infra Tech had obtained building plan permission for developing its property after executing gift deeds in favour of Navalur Panchayat with respect to assignment of OSR land for establishment of public park and roads.
However, in violation of the plan as well as the gift deed, the developer had encroached upon the public roads, park and the pond and were using them as private driveway, tennis court, car parking space and a private pond, the petitioner alleged and complained that its land too had been denied access from Old Mahabalipuram Road.
It was also brought to the notice of the court that Olympia had laid a temporary road on the banks of Buckingham Canal but that was removed after the National Green Tribunal declared it illegal in 2015. Thereafter, in 2018, the Thiruporur Tahsildar had given a report against the developer with respect to OSR land and the pond. Yet, DTCP did not act and hence the writ petition.
When the case was taken up for final hearing in November 2022, the Division Bench directed the Chengalpattu Revenue Divisional Officer to inspect the properties in question and file a report. Accordingly, State Government Pleader P. Muthukumar submitted RDO’s report confirming encroachment of the water body and its use as car parking.
The RDO also confirmed the construction of the compound wall without permission. Therefore, the judges directed the officials to restore the water body and ensure statutory compliance with respect to OSR lands.
