The Madras High Court has directed the Tiruvallur District Collector to recover, within 12 weeks, public lands allegedly encroached upon by educational institutions linked to AIADMK MP M. Thambidurai’s family.
The petition was filed by advocate M. Purushothaman on behalf of G. Karunanidhi, president of the Konambedu Village Public Welfare Association. It alleged that in villages such as Konambedu and Narayanapuram in Tiruvallur district, institutions under the St Joseph Educational Trust—including schools, engineering colleges and a deemed university—had occupied government lands.
According to the plea, revenue records classify the lands as water catchment and “kallankuthu” categories. The petitioner claimed the areas were used to build student hostels, a training facility, a substation and a separate road for parking college buses, and that the encroachments had continued since 2001.
When the matter came up earlier on February 10 before Justices S.M. Subramaniam and C. Kumarappan, the court expressed dissatisfaction with the government’s survey report and ordered a fresh measurement and a report within two weeks.
On Monday, the Collector’s side submitted a detailed report and informed the court that officials had been instructed to remove the encroachments. The bench then ordered the Collector to ensure recovery of the concerned lands within 12 weeks.
