The Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court has directed the Tamil Nadu government to file its response in a petition challenging the lifting of a registration ban on temple lands in Karur district.
The case relates to about 3,084.95 acres of land said to belong to four temples—Kalyana Pasupatheeswarar Swamy Temple (Karur), Pazhimalai Balasubramania Swamy Temple, Ravieswarar Temple (Kuppuchipalayam) and Vikrutheeswarar Temple (Venchamangoodalur)—spread across 15 villages.
According to the petitioner, Salem-based Radhakrishnan, ryotwari pattas were issued in the names of 3,390 individuals for these lands. He said a ban on registering documents for the lands had been in place for years, but the district collector issued an order on July 9 lifting the restriction.
The petitioner alleged that the move enabled registration of temple lands without prior approval from the HR&CE Commissioner and the government, and claimed the lands were valued at around Rs 25,000 crore. After hearing the matter, the bench comprising Justices C.V. Karthikeyan and R. Sakthivel sought the state’s reply and adjourned the case to August 11.
