Times of India: Madurai-Trichi: Saturday, October 05, 2013.
The Madras high court has ordered status quo on
Tamil Nadu Slum Clearance Board's (TNSCB) plan to construct 587 houses in Peechankulam Colony in Trichy. The Madurai bench of the court
made this order while considering a bunch of five petitions challenging the
board's move to raise these many houses after demolishing 391 dwellings.
Five residents, including A Viswanathan of
Peechankulam Colony, had filed writ petitions individually at the HC bench,
challenging the construction. The charge of the petitioners was that the
TNSCB's proposed sale deed is against the sale agreements which were executed
by the Trichy unit of the Tamil Nadu Housing Board (TNHB). As the residents
purchased independent houses from TNHB through sale deeds, which made them full
owners of the superstructure and land, they sought interim injunction
restraining the TNSCB from evicting the petitioners. When the matter came up
before Justice S Nagamuthu on Friday, he ordered status quo on the matter and
adjourned it.
According to the petitioners, houses were built by
the TNHB during 1964 and 1968 in Peechankulam Colony and their control was transferred to TNSCB in 2004.
In May this year, the residents were ordered by
TNSCB to vacate their houses before June 30. so that new houses could be
constructed. Its notice stated that as the houses in the colony are dilapidated
and their stability is weak, the eviction of residents is necessary
Following the notice, a few residents filed an
application under the Right to Information (RTI) Act with the TNSCB. The RTI
information obtained on June 13 revealed that the government will construct 587 new houses . Of the 587 new houses, 391 houses would be allotted to the existing residents and the remaining 196 houses would be allotted to others.
Besides, the RTI revealed that only the
superstructure is transferred by the sale deed and the land would stand with
the TNSCB.
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