HR&CE recovers 79 cents near Lakshmi Narasimma Swamy Temple in Coimbatore after removing encroachments

The Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments (HR&CE) Department on Monday cleared encroachments from land belonging to the Varasidhi Vinayagar Temple, a sub-temple of the Lakshmi Narasimma Swamy Temple in Ukkadam, Coimbatore. The Department recovered 79 cents estimated to be worth over ₹100 crore.

A senior HR&CE official said the Joint Commissioner (JC) had issued an order to remove the encroachments in 2015, followed by notices to those occupying the land. The occupants first filed an appeal before the Joint Commissioner’s court. After the order was upheld, they filed a further appeal before the Secretary to the Government, HR&CE Department (appellate authority), who also sustained the original decision. The matter was then taken to the Madras High Court, which rejected the petition on November 27 this year.

“With the High Court rejecting the case, we proceeded with the JC’s original order and recovered the land, which had around 22 structures, including residential and commercial units,” the official said.

Those living on the land initially protested and sought time to vacate, but eviction was carried out with police personnel deployed at the site. AIADMK MLA Amman K. Arjunan visited the location, held discussions, and said he would assist the affected families in securing alternative housing.

N. Prakash, whose house was demolished, said they came to know a few days earlier that eviction was likely. “We asked for time, but the process went ahead. We had no option but to move to our relatives’ houses immediately,” he said.