GOVERNMENT OF TAMIL NADU & OTHERS versus R. THAMARAISELVAM ETC. ETC.

Citation: [2023] 4 S.C.R. 851 · Decided: 04-05-2023 · Supreme Court of India · Bench: M.R. SHAH · Disposal: Dismissed
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Judgment (excerpt)

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   [2023] 4 S.C.R. 851
851
GOVERNMENT OF TAMIL NADU & OTHERS
v.
R. THAMARAISELVAM ETC. ETC.
(Civil Appeal Nos.1580-1608 of 2022)
MAY 04, 2023
[M. R. SHAH AND B. V. NAGARATHNA, JJ.]
Land Grabbing: Land grabbing matters – By a Government
Order, the State of Tamil Nadu, constituted Anti Land Grabbing
Special Cells in Tamil Nadu for investigating the cases pertaining
to land grabbing, however, without defining land grabbing cases –
By the other Government Order the land grabbing cases were ordered
to be transferred to the Special Courts constituted to exclusively
deal with the land grabbing cases – Writ Petitions against the said
G.Os – High Court set aside the G.Os on the ground that the same
does not lay down any yardstick or guideline to pick and choose
and select particular cases against particular persons said to have
indulged in land grabbing and in the absence of definition of the
word/phrase “Land Grabbing”, discretion is vested with the police
personnel attached to the Anti-Land Grabbing Cell to pick and
choose against whom they want to register FIR and thereby, there is
possibility of misuse and abuse of the power – Other GO also
quashed – On appeal, held: There is no specific enactment and/or
Act to deal with land grabbing cases – In absence of any guidelines
and/or definition as to which cases can be said to be land grabbing
cases, it gives unfettered and unguided and arbitrary powers to the
police to treat any land case as a land grabbing case which would
be investigated by the Anti Land Grabbing Special Cell – Thus, the
High Court rightly set aside the GO with the liberty to the State
Government to bring appropriate legislation – Impugned judgment
and order of the High Court does not call for interference.
CIVIL APPELLATE JURISDICTION : Civil Appeal Nos.1580-
1608 of 2022.
From the Judgment and Order dated 10/02/2015 in WP Nos.26883,
27216 of 2011, 24925 of 2013, 27502 of 2011, 10198, 28060 of 2012,
28413 of 2014, WPMD No.19726 of 2014, WP Nos.25877, 26773 of
2011, 10775 of 2012, 20481 of 2014, 18872, 21126, 25876, 27215, 27503,
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SUPREME COURT REPORTS
[2023] 4 S.C.R.
27504, 27505 of 2011, 8227, 8261, 10185, 25834, 26956, 26957 of 2012,
4476, 31673 of 2014, 26884 of 2011, 26885 of 2015 of the High Court of
Madras.
With
Criminal Appeal No.275 of 2022.
R. Shunmugasundaram, Advocate General, V. Krishnamurthy,
AAG, Dr. Ram Sankar, K. Elangovan, L. Sivakumar, Sharu Kumar,
Suvethan, Ms. Sujatha Bagadhi, Ms. Shaarumathi, Yusuf, B. Balaji, Dr.
Joseph Aristotle S., Ms. Preeti Singh, Ms. Nupur Sharma, Sanjeev Kumar
Mahara, S. Thananjayan, Ms. Aaina Verma, Ms. Jaswanthi Anbuselvam,
Ms. Promila, K.S. Mahadevan, Rangarajan, Ms. Swati Bansal, Rajesh
Kumar, E. C. Agrawala, T. R. B. Sivakumar, B. Sridhar, Venkateswara
Rao Anumolu, S. Gowthaman, R. Nedumaran, K.V. Jagdishvaran, Ms.
N.P. Haibila, Ms. G. Indira, Anish R. Shah, M.P. Srivignesh, Mithunkumaar
N., Jose Abraham, Advs. for the appearing parties.
The Judgment of the Court was delivered by
M. R. SHAH, J.
1. Feeling aggrieved and dissatisfied with the impugned common
judgment and order dated 10.02.2015 passed by the High Court of
Judicature at Madras in Writ Petition No. 18872/2011 and other allied
writ petitions, by which the High Court has allowed the said writ petitions
and has quashed G.O. (Ms.) No. 423, Home (Police XI) Department
dated 28.07.2011 (hereinafter referred to as ‘G.O. No. 423 dated
28.07.2011’) as well as G.O.(Ms.) No. 451, Home (Court III) Department
dated 11.08.2011 (hereinafter referred to as ‘G.O. No. 451 dated
11.08.2011’), the State of Tamil Nadu has preferred the present appeals.
1.1 Criminal Appeal No. 275/2022 has been preferred challenging
the impugned order dated 04.11.2020 passed by the High Court of
Judicature at Madras in Criminal O.P. No. 23641/2019, by which the
High Court has directed to transfer the case being C.C. No. 2 of 2012
from the Court of Special Judicial Magistrate, Land Grabbing, Erode to
the file of Judicial Magistrate-II, Erode.
2. Vide G.O. No. 423 dated 28.07.2011, the State of Tamil Nadu
sanctioned formation of 36 Anti Land Grabbing Special Cells in Tamil
Nadu with one cell each at the State Police Headquarters, 7
Commissionerates and 28 Districts to deal with the Land Grabbing Cases
in the State. Consequent upon the said G.O., another G.O. bearing No.
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451 dated 11.08.2011 came to be issued and the Land Grabbing Cases
were ordered to be transferred to the Speci
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