CHENNAI: The Madras High Court has allowed the Chennai Metro Rail Limited (CMRL) to proceed with its original design for constructing a metro rail station on the premises of Sri Rathina Vinayagar and Durgai Amman Temples on Whites Road without disturbing the United India Insurance Company Limited’s premises.
Justice N Anand Venkatesh, in an order passed on Tuesday, said, citing a Kerala High Court order, “God will forgive us. God will protect the petitioners, the authorities, and also the author of this judgment.”
Allowing a petition filed by United India Insurance Company Limited, which opposed the CMRL’s revised plan to save the temple land and, instead, raise the constructions running through its premises, the judge quashed the notification of CMRL for acquiring land belonging to the petitioner-company under Section 3 (2) of Tamil Nadu (Acquisition of Lands for Industrial Purposes) Act, 1997.
The company had opposed the notification on the grounds of having raised a new building for its office at a cost of Rs 200 crore by getting approval from the Chennai Metropolitan Development Authority and an NOC from CMRL.
The CMRL had changed its original plan following a court order on a PIL plea filed by Alayam Kappom Foundation.
Justice Venkatesh said the court has no hesitation in concluding that the impugned notice is vitiated as it offends Article 14 of The Constitution of India by violating the principle of “promissory estoppel.”
“This court is convinced that it would be completely contrary to public interest to tear down a building/or portions thereof of a recently constructed structure put up at a cost of Rs 200 crore by a public sector entity, after obtaining all clearances and the NOC from the CMRL. To permit such an exercise by the CMRL would be an egregious fraud on the power of acquisition and would be so grossly unfair and arbitrary that it deserves the label “abuse of power” under Article 14 of The Constitution,” he reasoned.