A church, several temples, a hotel and shops stand on what the revenue records call road land. Within twelve weeks, and after following the statutory procedure, the Madras High Court has directed Tamil Nadu authorities to clear every encroachment identified on the Hosur government road land.
Chennai: Encroachments identified by the Hosur Tahsildar on government land classified as a road at Mookondapalli village are to be removed under the Tamil Nadu Land Encroachment Act, so that the land can be used for public purposes, the Madras High Court has directed the Krishnagiri district authorities [Santhakumar v. District Collector, Krishnagiri District and Others].
Justice S.M. Subramaniam and Justice R. Rajesh Vivekananthan, sitting as a Division Bench, passed the order on October 14, 2026 and disposed of a writ petition filed in 2023. Justice S.M. Subramaniam authored it.
Confined to the Tahsildar’s list
Encroachments beyond the official record were not examined by the Bench, whose direction is confined to those the Tahsildar identified in his status report:
“This Court cannot form an opinion regarding the entire encroachments in the present writ petition. Therefore, it is necessary to consider the encroachments identified by the Tahsildar in his status report. In respect of other encroachments, if any exists, the 14th respondent or any other person is at liberty to file a complaint to the competent authority, who in turns shall take all appropriate actions in the manner known to law.”
It then directed:
“The official respondents are directed to proceed with the enforcement action by following the procedures as contemplated under the relevant Statutes and Rules in force and remove the encroachments, and allow the government land to be utilised for public purpose for usage of the public.”
Twelve weeks from the date of receipt of a copy of the order is the time allowed for the exercise. The writ petition was disposed of without costs, and the connected miscellaneous petition was closed.
The petition that began it
Santhakumar, the petitioner, sought a writ of mandamus directing the authorities to demolish a church structure which he alleged was being built as an encroachment on Survey No. 370/1, without statutory approval or permission, and to remove encroachments from the land on the basis of his representations of April 9, April 16, June 7 and November 29, 2021. The Tahsildar’s status report describes him as joint secretary of the Tamil Nadu unit of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad.
What the Tahsildar reported
The Court recorded on June 12, 2026 the status report that the Tahsildar, Hosur, had filed on its direction. The land, it said, measures 2.16 hectares and is classified in revenue records as “J.F. Road Battai”, meaning a path or road. The encroachments it listed were a Christian church (27 cents); Om Sakthi, Sai Baba and Shiva temples (10 cents); a hotel, a park and a Vinayagar temple (90 cents); an Anjaneya temple (2 cents); houses; concrete shops; temporary petty shops and hotels; and a private company (7 cents).
Construction of the church had stopped, the report added, though a church building exists on the land where prayers are conducted. Immediate eviction could create a law and order problem, which is why a “go slow” approach had been taken, it said, and the authorities would obey and implement the High Court’s order.
The submissions on both sides
The Government Pleader told the Court that show cause notices under Section 7 of the Land Encroachment Act had been issued to the encroachers. Once their explanations are considered, final notices under Section 6 would be issued and enforcement action would follow.
Senior counsel Fr. Xavier Arulraj, appearing for the 14th respondent, the pastor of the church, argued that the petitioner was targeting the church alone despite knowing that there were other encroachers, and that any objection ought to cover all the encroachments on the land.
Public land, whoever the occupant
Land use and statutory procedure, rather than the identity of the occupant, frame the order’s treatment of encroachment on public land. Every structure listed in the official survey, religious or commercial, falls within the direction, and the authorities must act through the notice and hearing process under the Land Encroachment Act.
Apprehension of law and order trouble, the order signals, cannot justify indefinite inaction on public land. The Court also kept the door open for anyone, including the church’s pastor, to bring other encroachments to the notice of the competent authority.
Case Title: Santhakumar v. District Collector, Krishnagiri District and Others [W.P. No. 213 of 2023]
Bench: Justice S.M. Subramaniam and Justice R. Rajesh Vivekananthan, Madras High Court
Date of Order: October 14, 2026
Appearances: B. Jagannath for the petitioner; E. Ranganayaki, AGP, for respondents 1 to 3; Fr. Xavier Arulraj for M/s. Father Xavier Associates for respondent 14