Following the petition by Tamil Nadu government that the Sadavarti Satram lands belonged to them, Supreme Court directed the Telangana and Andhra Pradesh High Court resolve the dispute over the ownership of the lands located at Thalambur village in Kancheepuram district in Tamil Nadu.
A bench led by Chief Justice of India Dipak Misra on Friday heard the case and conceded the arguments of Tamil Nadu government which claimed the ownership and held that the lands did not belong to the endowment and were lying as unclaimed property for nearly four decades.
Days after the second round of bidding took place, apex court cancelled the auctioning and directed the High Court to consider the stand of Tamil Nadu government.
The tussle began in 2016 when YSRCP Mangalagiri MLA knocked the doors of the court complaining that the 83 acres of the land was sold at throwaway price of ₹22.44 crore. High court offered the counsel to deposit ₹27.44 crore with the Endowments Commissioner of Andhra Pradesh and secure the lands. After this order was challenged, the High Court ordered for holding fresh auctions which fetched about ₹60crores. In the meantime, Tamil Nadu government took cognisance of the issue and filed a petition in High Court over the ownership which was rejected.
