Chennai: The Madras high court has restrained the Sub-Registrar, Saidapet from registering the Mortgage deed allegedly involving Marshland in Pallikaranai, entered into between M/s IG 3 Info Limited and M/s Axis Trustee Service Limited for Rs 1,350 crore.
A division bench comprising Justices S.Manikumar and Subramonium Prasad granted the interim injunction on a Public Interest Litigation filed by Kalamin Agni Sirahugal Trust represented by its secretary M. Senthil Kumar.
The bench posted to October 23, further hearing of the PIL, which sought to order CBI probe into the alleged assignment of marshland measuring 7.64.5 hectares to M/s IG 3 Info Limited at Pallikaranai in the city and grant of patta and also the company’s attempt to pledge the property for Rs 1,350 crore with M/s Axis Trustee Service Limited.
According to petitioner, the Chennai corporation alienated the marshland to the forest department. Since the forest department did not follow the procedure contemplated under the Forest Land at the time of alienation, most of the residential area, where the Below Poverty Line people were living for over 20 years, came under the purview of the forest land.
Since the forest department threatened to evict the poor people, some of them approached the high court and obtained interim orders, he added. He said the Pallikaranai marshland was the last marshland in the city. While so, a news report was published in an English daily that M/s IG 3 Info Ltd was attempting to get a loan of Rs 1,350 crore by pledging the marshland.
On inquiry, he also came to know that M/s IG 3 Info Ltd was trying to pledge the marshland with the M/s Axis Trustee Service Limited for a consideration of Rs 1,350 crore. The mortgage deed was presented before the Sub-Registrar office in Saidapet for registration on April 16, 2018 and it was pending.
He also came to know that several government, forest and revenue officials were also involved in this land grabbing. Therefore, he has filed the present petition, Senthil kumar added.
