Kochi: Preetha Shaji, who led nearly two-year old struggle to reverse an order of the Debt Recovery Tribunal in Kochi attaching 18 cents of land and house linked to a loan default case, re-entered her house on Sunday amidst the presence of a slew of political leaders including education minister C. Raveendranath and Congress leaders V.M. Sudheeran and P.T. Thomas MLA. Justice (Retd) P.K. Shamsuddin formally opened the doors of the house in the presence of hundreds of activists who spearheaded the agitation facilitating for the entry of Ms Shaji and her family members.
Ms Shaji had earlier set fire to an effigy representing the unholy nexus between real-estate mafia, DRT and banks, in depriving the poor and vulnerable sections of the people of their land and other assets using the provisions of the Securitisation and Reconstruction of Financial Assets and Enforcement Act (SARFAESI).
The ordeal of Ms Shaji and her family had begun when her husband Shaji stood guarantor for a bank loan of Rs 2 lakh for his friend. The friend had defaulted in the payment and the bank initiated recovery proceedings against Mr. Shaji under the Sarfaesi Act. The office of the Debt Recovery Tribunal in Ernakulam then gave verdict to auction the property for a consideration of Rs 37.8 lakh while Ms Shaji and family claimed that the market value of the property was worth Rs 2.5 cr. The matter then went to the various courts before the High Court upheld the DRT order and asked the authorities concerned to attach the property. Ms Shaji with the support of the Ant-Sarfaesi Peoples Movement then launched a long-drawn struggle which resulted in the High Court to quashing all proceedings against the family and return of the property to the family on a payment of Rs 43 lakh to the bank.
