HC orders CBI probe into illegal sale of govt. land assigned to religious body

The Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court has directed the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to register a case and conduct a probe into the illegal sale of 31.10 acres government land assigned to a religious body near Moondrumavadi in Tallakulam in Madurai.

The court was hearing a petition filed in 2021 by D. Devasahayam. The petitioner said that land was assigned by the government to the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions (ABCFM), which was an American Christian Missionary Organisation, for the purpose of establishing an industrial home for needy women.

He said that in violation of the assignment condition, the land was fraudulently alienated by the Church of South India, Madurai - Ramnad Diocese, without any title. He alleged that in the transaction a huge amount was misappropriated with connivance of many government officials and the same should be investigated by the CBI. He lodged a complaint with the CBI and filed the present petition to consider his representation.

Justice K.K. Ramakrishnan observed that the government land measuring 31.10 acres was assigned with certain conditions. One of the conditions was that the land was granted for the purpose of establishing an industrial home for needy women i.e., it shall be used only for industrial and charitable purposes. It was specifically assigned only to cultivate the lands and use its income for the industrial home for orphans and destitute.

ABCFM changed its name to United Church Board for World Ministries and abided by the conditions of assignment by cultivating the land and used its income for industrial home for orphans and destitute till 1973. There was a clause in the assignment that there cannot be a transfer of the land. That being so, the properties of the United Church Board for World Ministries were transferred to the Church of South India Trust Association (CSITA), the court observed.

The then Directors of the CSITA conspired and colluded with the then administrators of the CSI Madurai - Ramnad Diocese, with a dishonest intention to illegally sell the assigned properties of the government, fabricated the power deed and sold them in favour of several persons, the court observed.

The court took note of the fact that a resumption clause was available i.e., if the land is not used for the purpose, land should be restored to the government.

In this case, there were fraudulent transactions of astronomical level and further there was the illegal transfer of the money. The church has become voiceless since its administrators muzzled the voice of the persons who questioned their illegal activities of alienating huge property of the church. The property is still government property and the church authority has no jurisdiction to sell the property, the court observed.

Unfortunately, nowadays all over India, all the church properties are not properly managed by the administrators of the church, the court observed and directed the CBI to register the case against the persons connected with the fraudulent transaction and conduct the investigation in a proper manner.

Published - November 23, 2024 10:08 pm IST