Today, on 15th January 2026,Supreme Court stayed the Madras High Court order directing eviction of SASTRA University from Thanjavur government land. The Bench said the State should avoid prestige issues and stressed that welfare governments must value educational institutions serving important public functions.
NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court temporarily halted the Madras High Court’s order that directed the eviction of Shanmugha Arts, Science, Technology & Research Academy (SASTRA) from government land in Thanjavur.
A Bench, comprising Chief Justice of India Surya Kant and Justices Joymalya Bagchi and Vijay Bishnoi, remarked that the State should not perceive this issue as a matter of prestige. They emphasized that a welfare State must consider the contributions of educational institutions that serve public functions.
The Court pointed out that while encroachment on public land should not be condoned, this case involves a public educational institution rather than a commercial entity. It acknowledged that the land has been utilized for decades by a university fulfilling a public role and stated that States need to be sensitive in their dealings with such institutions.
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The Court instructed SASTRA to present a detailed representation to the State and directed the State to review it within four weeks. It also permitted SASTRA to continue operating from its current premises for the time being.
SASTRA approached the Supreme Court to challenge a Madras High Court ruling from January 9, 2026, which upheld the State government’s decision to deny SASTRA’s request for the assignment or exchange of government land and mandated its eviction from the disputed property.
The conflict centers on 31.37 acres of government land that borders SASTRA’s own patta land, forming part of an integrated university campus containing academic buildings, hostels, access roads, and utilities.
In its Special Leave Petition (SLP), SASTRA argued that enforcing the High Court’s judgment would significantly disrupt the university’s operations and impact over 12,000 students enrolled in various disciplines, including law, engineering, sciences, management, and liberal arts.
The legal conflict dates back to earlier proceedings that resulted in a Supreme Court order on September 14, 2018, which dismissed an SLP filed by SASTRA but allowed the University to make representations to State authorities.
Subsequently, SASTRA made several representations between 2018 and 2021, including proposals for exchanging alternative land parcels. Although the Tamil Nadu government established a committee, it eventually rejected these representations in 2022. This led to an eviction notice issued on February 25, 2022, prompting SASTRA to file writ petitions with the Madras High Court.
While those petitions were underway, the High Court issued interim orders on August 8 and September 6, 2022, noting that hostels and classrooms were operating on disputed land. The Court placed control of the land under its jurisdiction until a final resolution and clarified that students and their studies would not be affected, while restraining further construction.
On January 9, 2026, the High Court dismissed the writ petitions and upheld the State’s rejection of SASTRA’s representations, ordering the execution of the eviction notice within four weeks. The SLP indicates that officials entered the campus the following day to assert control over portions of the land.
A crucial point raised by SASTRA is the State’s claim that the land was designated for an open-air prison, which the University argues was made without formal notification or statutory declaration.
SASTRA also referred to the State’s land-exchange policy, which outlines a framework for swapping government land with educational institutions. The University asserted that it proposed several alternative parcels of land, including tracts larger than the disputed area.
SASTRA was represented by Senior Advocates CS Vaidyanathan and Mukul Rohatgi, while Senior Advocate Rakesh Dwivedi represented Tamil Nadu.
Case Title: SASTRA University v. State of Tamil Nadu
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