In a recent development concerning the Murasoli Trust land case, the Madras High Court instructed the state government to present revenue documents pertaining to the land on which the Murasoli Trust is established, adjourning the case related to the Panchami land allegation.
Justice SM Subramaniam presided over the case filed by Murasoli Trust, the official mouthpiece of the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, represented by its trustee RS Bharathi. The case sought to restrain the National Commission for Scheduled Castes (NCSC) from proceeding with a hearing on the complaint filed by R Srinivasan, Tamil Nadu BJP state secretary.
Senior counsel P Wilson, representing the trust, argued that there is insufficient evidence to substantiate the claim that the Murasoli Trust’s land is categorized as Panchami land. The counsel also referred to a statement made by the late Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa in the state Assembly, asserting that there is no Panchami land in Chennai. Emphasising that the NCSC lacks the authority to decide the land’s sale title, the counsel highlighted that the land was acquired by Anjugam Publication, and the relevant sale deed with land ownership documents has been presented to the court.
Furthermore, the counsel contested the legitimacy of the complaint filed by Srinivasan, stating that he does not have the standing to raise the issue as he is not a member of the Scheduled Caste (SC). The counsel also raised concerns about the political bias of the former vice-chairman of the NCSC, L Murugan, who is now appointed as a Union Minister of the State, suggesting that the case is politically motivated. Citing Article 338 of the Constitution, the counsel argued that a commission’s report cannot be treated as a court decree.
In response, Additional Solicitor General (ASG) ARL Sundaresan, representing the NCSC, asserted that the commission has a responsibility to investigate complaints related to the deprivation of SC individuals. The ASG maintained that the contested land is indeed Panchami land, and the commission is obligated to investigate whether SC people are being deprived. Following these arguments, the Judge instructed the state to provide the revenue records of the land and postponed the hearing to 4 January 2024 for further proceedings.
Allegations, supported by credible evidence, suggested back then that the land housing the office of the party’s publication, ‘Murasoli,’ originally belonged to an SC, then transferred to non-SCs before being acquired by Anjugam Publications. The issue gained prominence when the Stalin, the opposition leader in 2019, praised the film “Asuran,” bringing attention to Dalit land rights.
(with inputs from DTNext)
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