CHENNAI: The original owner of the land in what is now Shanthi Colony, Anna Nagar, will finally get justice and the amount due to her for the land she sold to the State government five decades ago. On January 6, the VI Assistant Judge passed an order attaching the movable properties of the State Housing Board offices to ensure the dues are handed over to S Kausalya, the original owner of the land.
In April 1966, the government acquired two acres and 900 sq ft in the then Periyakudal and Sirukudal villages, (now Shanthi Colony in Anna Nagar) for Rs 67,785 from S Kausalya.
Contending that the compensation amount was far below the market value, Kausalya (84), now a widow, moved the City Civil Court in 1967, demanding `3,000 per ground, the prevailing rate then.
The government countered by maintaining that the rates fixed and the compensation awarded by the land acquisition officer was just and reasonable. The VI Assistant Judge declared that the claimant was not entitled to any enhanced rate of compensation and dismissed the Land Acquisition Original Petition on August 10, 1989.
Aggrieved, she appealed to the Madras High Court in 1997 and the then Justice K Chandru (now retired) held in August 2010 that the appellant was entitled to get enhanced compensation at the rate of `3,000 per ground, together with other statutory benefits.
Kausalya moved the City Civil Court with two petitions, in 2011 and in 2014 to execute the August 2010 order. An amount of Rs 98,168 was calculated as due to her from the government as per the enhanced compensation. Of this amount, the interest component alone was Rs 91,043. Kausalya had to move the High Court yet another time with a criminal revision petition for a direction to the City Civil Court to pass final orders on the execution petitions.
After listening to the submissions of advocate V Raghupathy, who has represented the petitioner all along from 1967, Justice M Duraiswamy in October, 2016, directed the City Civil Court to dispose of the execution petition on merit within two months. The order attaching the movable properties of the State Housing Board offices includes four old computers and three AC machines. According to advocate V S Suresh, Raghupathy’s junior, unnecessary and undue delay in honouring the court orders has resulted in mounting interest, which could have been avoided. The attachment process continues, he added.