Lt. Governor asks officials to probe all temple land scams and secure properties

Lt. Governor K. Kailashnathan has directed authorities to probe fraud relating to temple lands, secure usurped properties and put in place mechanisms to prevent such scams in future.

The Lt. Governor’s instructions come in the wake of the arrest of a Deputy Collector and a couple of other revenue staff in Karaikal during a police probe into a scam using forged documents to sell off lands belonging to the Sri Parvatheeswarar Swamy Temple in Kovilpathu, Karaikal.

A press note from the Raj Nivas said the Lt. Governor has called for a thorough investigation in temple land grabs to identify persons involved in such scams. Steps should be taken to immediately recover such temple lands and hand them back to the temple administration.

A proper survey of temple properties needs to be undertaken and measures for their proper maintenance initiated, the Lt. Governor said.

The Revenue, Land Survey, Registration and Religious Endowment Departments should work with extra vigilance to prevent such matters from recurring, he said.

The press note said the Lt. Governor was closely monitoring the investigation into the Karaikal case, which follows the another land scam carried out with collusion of senior officials relating to property of the Kamatchiamman temple in Puducherry that caused a public furore and rocked the administration.

The Lt. Governor, who made it explicit that scams involving temple lands would not be brooked, has instructed the District Collector, who was part of the has already been advised that no mistakes should be made in the investigation.

Mr. Kailashnathan has also sought creating awareness among people so that they can detect and expose such land scams.

Published - October 14, 2024 10:34 pm IST