HC reserves orders on writers' plea on house allotment
has reserved orders on pleas moved by writer and TN's first woman IPS officer, G Thilagavathy, and Tamil scholar Ilakkuvanar Maraimalai, challenging a state govt decision to reject their allotted house under 'Kanavu Illam' scheme.
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The scheme was launched on late chief minister M Karunanidhi's 97th birth anniversary to honour Tamil scholars who were awarded the Gnana Peeth, Sahitya Akademi, and national or state-level literary awards with special house allotments. However, after the announcement of 10 beneficiaries under the scheme, govt declared that houses would not be allotted to persons who already own a house from TNHB.
The writers challenged this and said it was clearly stated that the house was given as an honour to scholars, even if the recipient owned a house.
"In 2022-23, among the 10 scholars selected under the scheme, Thilagavathy was first on the list as she was awarded the Sahitya award in 2005," counsel for the petitioner said.
While the state allotted a house for her at Anna Nagar with a built-in flat area of 1,409sqft, the state modified the criteria in 2024. The awardees became ineligible to receive the allotment if they had already purchased a flat or plot from TNHB. This excluded her from the scheme, as she owns a house at Virugambakkam.
Recording the submissions, Justice N Anand Venkatesh observed that he would pass an order making the scheme prospective and not retrospective so that the scholars already selected can get the allotment.
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