Disposed¶21

M.Balakrishnan v. Rajapriya Ramachandran

Madras HC9 Apr 2026CONT P(MD)/1692/2021

Case brief

AI extract

What is this about?

Madras High Court Madurai Bench contempt petition closed 09.04.2026; Cont P(MD)No.1692 of 2021 in W.P(MD)No.4693 of 2021; Section 11 Contempts of Courts Act 1971; disobedience of writ order dated 08-03-2021; removal of encroachment; Porusupatty Panchayat President Rajapriya Ramachandran; President of local body cannot coercively enforce encroachment removal; direction to Tahsildar Madurai East Taluk; four months' time; petitioner M.Balakrishnan; G.R.Swaminathan J.; R.Poornima J.

What did the court decide?

Direction issued to the Tahsildar, Madurai East Taluk, Madurai to take action as per law for removing the encroachment, with four months' time granted to complete the exercise; the Contempt Petition was closed with this direction. ¶21

M.Balakrishnan Vs Rajapriya Ramachandran — Madras HC (2026) — LawSathi Research

What the court decided

AI extract

Outcome

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Issue for consideration

Whether the respondent, Rajapriya Ramachandran, President, Porusupatty Panchayat, committed contempt by disobeying the orders of this Court passed in W.P(MD)No.4693 of 2021 dated 08-03-2021 and should be punished under Section 11 of the Contempts of Courts Act, 1971. +1 more

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Court's answer

With the aforesaid direction, this Contempt Petition is closed.

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Ratio / Principle

It is well settled that the President of the local body cannot coercively enforce any order for removal of encroachment.

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Key takeaways

Taking note of the submissions of the learned counsel, the Court directed the Tahsildar, Madurai East Taluk, Madurai to take action as per law for removing the encroachment in question and granted four months' time to the Tahsildar to complete the entire exercise.ratio¶20

Detailed headnote1 paragraphs

Contempt petition (Cont P(MD)No.1692 of 2021) filed under Section 11 of the Contempts of Courts Act, 1971 by M.Balakrishnan before the Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court, seeking punishment of Rajapriya Ramachandran, President, Porusupatty Panchayat, Madurai District, for disobeying the orders passed in W.P(MD)No.4693 of 2021 dated 08-03-2021 concerning removal of encroachment. Order of the Court made by G.R.Swaminathan J. (bench including R.Poornima J.), dated 09.04.2026: noting that it is well settled that the President of a local body cannot coercively enforce any order for removal of encroachment, and taking note of the submissions of learned counsel, the Court directed the Tahsildar, Madurai East Taluk, Madurai, to take action as per law for removing the encroachment in question, granting four months' time to complete the entire exercise; with this direction the Contempt Petition was closed.

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Cont P(MD)No.1692 of 2021

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BEFORE THE MADURAI BENCH OF MADRAS HIGH COURT

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DATED : 09.04.2026

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CORAM

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THE HONOURABLE MR.JUSTICE G.R.SWAMINATHAN

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AND

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THE HONOURABLE MS.JUSTICE R.POORNIMA Cont P(MD)No.1692 of 2021

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W.P(MD)No.4693 of 2021

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M.Balakrishnan ... Petitioner / Petitioner

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Vs.

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Rajapriya Ramachandran, President, Porusupatty Panchayat, Madurai District. ... Contemnor / 4^th Respondent

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Prayer: Contempt Petition filed under Section 11 of Contempts of Courts Act, 1971 to punish the respondent herein for her act of contempt committed by her for disobeying the orders of this Court passed in W.P(MD)No.4693 of 2021 dated 08-03-2021.

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For Petitioner : Mr.Mark.J.Jackson For Respondent : Mr.G.V.Vairam Santhosh Additional Government Pleader

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https://www.mhc.tn.gov.in/judis

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Cont P(MD)No.1692 of 2021

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ORDER

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(Order of the Court was made by G.R.Swaminathan J.)

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The petitioner sought removal of the petition mentioned encroachment. Unfortunately, direction was issued only against the President of the local body. It is well settled that the President of the local body cannot coercively enforce any order for removal of encroachment. However, taking note of the submissions of the learned counsel, we direct the Tahsildar, Madurai East Taluk, Madurai to take action as per law for removing the encroachment in question. We grant four months' time to the Tahsildar to complete the entire exercise.

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2.With the aforesaid direction, this Contempt Petition is closed.

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[G.R.S., J.] [R.P, J.] 09.04.2026

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NCC : Yes / No Index : Yes / No Internet : Yes/ No MGA

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https://www.mhc.tn.gov.in/judis

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Cont P(MD)No.1692 of 2021