Annakili vs A. Vedanayagam & Ors

2. Plaintiffs-Respondents are owners of the property in question. They purchased the same from Corporation of Madras by a registered deed of sale dated 19.4.1944. The owners of the property, namely Krishnadoss Lala and his brother, however, partitioned their suit properties on or about 5.5.1968 whereupon the suit properties were allotted to the share of Krishnadoss Lala. After his demise, the same vested in his heirs and legal representatives. They, along with one Mohamed Idris and one K. Peer Mohideen entered into an agreement whereby and whereunder, it was agreed that the property should be released from the notification of the year 1973 issued by the Tamil Nadu Slum Clearance Board.

3. Plaintiffs-Respondent herein purchased the suit properties not only from the heirs and legal representatives of the said Krishnadoss Lala but also from the said Mohamed Idris and K. Peer Mohideen for valuable consideration by a registered deed of sale dated 30.9.1986.

4. Defendants claimed possession of the suit properties described in Schedule A of the plaint therein since 1957. On or about 1.12.1972, the Government of Tamil Nadu designated an area including the suit properties as slum area. It was transferred to Tamil Nadu Slum Clearance Board.

8. Appellant and other persons similarly situated were not parties therein. They preferred a Writ Appeal before the Division Bench of the High Court which was numbered as writ appeal No.272 of 1990. The Division Bench of the High Court by a judgment and order dated 21.3.1990 found the title of the respondent herein having regard to the admitted facts in the said proceedings, but upon holding that as the appellants have ventured to put forth a case that their occupation of the property relate back to 60 years which conferred the right to them de hors the said proceedings and as direction to hand over the vacant possession would result in dispossession of the third parties to which the learned Single Judge had no occasion to advert to and adjudicate upon the rights of the third parties, because they were not parties in the said writ petition, directed :

16. The fact that title of the land was with Corporation of Madras is not in dispute. It is furthermore not in dispute that the Corporation of Madras had transferred the suit property in favour of Mr. Krishnadoss Lala. Despite the fact that the Corporation of Madras had divested itself of the said property, it erroneously transferred the same in favour of Tamil Nadu Slum Clearance Board on 1.12.1973. Pursuent thereto, certain development activities were taken by the Board. At that point of time, Shri Krishnadoss Lala submitted a representation to the Corporation of Madras stating that although the property belonged to him, the same was illegally transferred to the Tamil Nadu Slum Clearance Board. The Corporation accepted the said mistake on its part and informed the Tamil Nadu Slum Clearance Board thereabout. A request was made to the Board to exclude the said property from the list of properties owned by the Slum Clearance Board. The predecessors and representatives of the respondent thereafter paid the development charges incurred by the Slum Clearance Board. A request was made by the Board to denotify the Slum area but the State did not take any action thereupon.

In any view of the matter, in the facts of the given case, we do not find any error or illegality in the order of the learned single Judge so as to call for interference. The writ appeal is, therefore, dismissed.

Jagadish Kalita Para 21.)

28. For the views we have taken, there is no infirmity in the judgment of the High Court. The appeal is dismissed. No costs.