Kochi, Oct 24 The Kerala High Court has directed the state government to constitute a dedicated high-level Special Task Force (STF) to look into land encroachments and ensure full control over government land and properties in Munnar and nearby villages of Idukki district, expressing concern over the lack of concrete action despite years of official reports and court proceedings.
A Division Bench comprising Justices Devan Ramachandran and Basant Balaji issued the direction on October 22 while hearing a batch of long-pending writ petitions and contempt proceedings related to land in the region.
The court expressed concern that several official reports and action plans submitted between 2003 and 2010 had not resulted in concrete action.
These included reports by the then Additional Chief Secretary, the Additional Director General of Police, a committee led by the Revenue Secretary and the Idukki district collector.
“Unfortunately, reports after reports are remaining in the back-burner, without any concrete action being taken. The apparent confusion on account of multiple reports is also taken advantage of by vested interests,” the Bench observed.
The court said the continued delay could leave the issue unresolved for years unless the recommendations in the earlier reports were acted upon.
The proposed STF will comprise senior officers from the Revenue and Police departments and representatives of other relevant government departments.
The court also considered suggestions by amicus curiae Harish Vasudevan on the team’s composition and functioning.
The Bench directed that officers assigned to the task force be relieved of their other duties for at least six months so they could focus exclusively on the task.
The court said the task force should “examine and implement the recommendations in the reports; and complete requisite actions” to ensure full control over the lands and properties in the districts and villages concerned.
The Bench said the STF would have “much larger and comprehensive responsibilities” than the existing Special Investigation Team (SIT), which is investigating cases involving fake and fraudulent land title deeds, known as pattayams.
During the hearing, Additional Advocate General K C Vincent, assisted by Government Pleader Raphael Thekkan, informed the court that the state government was willing to constitute a high-level task force to “bring order and control over the properties in the districts and villages in question”.
Senior counsel P V Dinesh and advocate Daisy A Philipose, appearing for the petitioners, sought urgent intervention, arguing that further delays and repeated exercises to collect reports would only worsen the situation.
Vasudevan told the court that earlier monitoring committees had failed to achieve results because their members were burdened with routine administrative responsibilities.
He suggested that experienced administrators, including former Idukki district collectors and officers associated with the SIT, be considered for the dedicated team.
The High Court directed the state government to submit a list of officers who could be assigned exclusively to the STF when the petitions are considered again on October 29.
The court will examine the proposed names and issue further directions on the team’s composition, powers and operational framework.
(PTI News)
