The Hindu 23.01.2011
Corporation allowed to take over land for playground
The Madras High Court has dismissed a writ petition filed by an educational trust of Shenoy Nagar here challenging an order of July 2002 of the Chennai Corporation requiring the Trust to hand over a piece of land to it for establishing a Corporation playground.
The Thiru.Vi.Ka.Dr.Mu.Va. Educational Trust was a lessee of lands belonging to the Corporation. Under the first deed, lease was granted in respect of two blocks – A, measuring 1.50 acres and B of an extent of 2.10 acres. Thereafter, under a deed of April 1963, lands in blocks C and D, respectively measuring 4.30 acres and 1.35 acres were also leased out to the Trust.
The terms stipulated that blocks B and C should be used as playgrounds, A for running a high school and D for an elementary school.
When the lease expired, the government in 1994 ordered extension of lease of A block for 30 years, fixing the lease rent at seven per cent of the market value.
However, the government ordered resumption of lands in B block for a playground.
By an order dated July 10, 2002, the civic body issued an order requiring the trust to hand over block C land for establishing a corporation playground.
The Trust challenged this order.
A Division Bench, comprising Justices Elipe Dharma Rao and K.K. Sasidharan, did not accept the trust's contention that it was running schools on charity.
Only because of this, the Corporation seemed to have recalculated the entire lease arrears, further having regard to the aspect of violation of lease terms.
The Bench said considering the welfare of students, teaching and non-teaching staff working in the schools, it was directing the Commissioner to resume lands in A and D blocks with buildings thereon after completion of the academic year 2010-11, at any cost before June 1, 2011. The Corporation was entitled to resume C block lands immediately.
It directed the Corporation to take all necessary measures to continue to run the schools without any break.
