Dismissed¶38

M.Babu v. the District Collector

Madras HC9 Apr 2026WP/13133/2026

Case brief

AI extract

What is this about?

Tanks Act 2007 eviction; Form-III Eviction Notice 06.02.2026; show cause notice; no writ against show cause notice; Government Poromboke Canal; water body; encroachment removal; PWD Assistant Engineer competent authority; Article 226 certiorari; Chengalpattu District Collector; Tahsildar Pallavaram; twelve weeks compliance; writ petitions dismissed; batch WP Nos. 13133, 13135, 13157 & 13158 of 2026; Neutral Citation 2026:MHC:1473.

What did the court decide?

No substantive relief; petitions dismissed. Petitioners given liberty to submit explanation/documents, and the competent authority directed to adjudicate and complete any enforcement action within twelve weeks. ¶38

M.Babu Vs the District Collector — Writ and Judicial Review | Madras HC (2026)

What the court decided

AI extract

Outcome

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Issue for consideration

Whether the impugned Form-III Eviction Notices dated 06.02.2026 issued by the 3rd respondent are illegal, arbitrary and without jurisdiction and liable to be quashed. +2 more

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Court's answer

Petitioners who possess documents to establish that the subject property is not a water body are at liberty to submit those documents along with their explanation defending their case to the respondents.

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Ratio / Principle

No writ petition is entertainable against a show cause notice; the authorities must be provided an opportunity to adjudicate the issues on merits by affording an opportunity to the alleged encroachers.

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Key takeaways

On receipt of the explanation/documents, the competent authority shall consider the representation, take a final decision, pass appropriate orders and thereafter proceed with the enforcement action in respect of the water body.ratio¶37
The entire exercise (consideration of explanation, final decision and enforcement action) shall be completed within twelve weeks from the date of receipt of a copy of the order.ratio¶37
With the above direction, the writ petitions stand dismissed; consequently, connected miscellaneous petitions are closed and there is no order as to costs.

Detailed headnote1 paragraphs

Madras High Court (S.M. Subramaniam J., authoring, with K. Surender J.), by common order dated 09-04-2026, dismissed WP Nos. 13133, 13135, 13157 & 13158 of 2026 filed under Article 226 of the Constitution of India challenging Form-III Eviction Notices dated 06.02.2026 issued by the Assistant Engineer, PWD (3rd respondent) under the Tamil Nadu Protection of Tanks and Eviction of Encroachment Act, 2007, the subject property having been found classified as 'Government Poromboke Canal', a water body. Holding that no writ lies against a show cause notice, the Court permitted the petitioners to submit documents/explanation and directed the competent authority to consider the representation, take a final decision, pass appropriate orders and complete any enforcement action within twelve weeks; connected miscellaneous petitions closed, no costs.

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2026:MHC:1473

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WP No. 13133 of 2026 etc., batch

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IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT MADRAS

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DATED: 09-04-2026

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CORAM

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THE HON'BLE MR JUSTICE S. M. SUBRAMANIAM

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AND

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THE HON'BLE MR.JUSTICE K. SURENDER WP Nos. 13133, 13135, 13157 & 13158 of 2026 and WMP Nos. 14391, 14393, 14412 & 14416 of 2026

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M.Babu

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..Petitioner in W.P.No.13133 of 2026

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N.Kamaldass

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..Petitioner in W.P.No.13135 of 2026

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Sivagami

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..Petitioner in W.P.No.13157 of 2026

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Saravanan M

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..Petitioner in W.P.No.13158 of 2026

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The District Collector, Chengalpattu, Chengalpattu District.

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The Tahsildar, Pallavaram Taluk Office, Pallavaram, Chennai.

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The Assistant Engineer, PWD Irrigation Section, Water Resource Department, Padappai-601 301.

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..Respondents

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Page1 of 5

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

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WP No. 13133 of 2026 etc., batch

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Common Prayer: Writ Petitions filed under Article 226 of the Constitution of India, praying to issue a Writ of Certiorari, calling for the entire records pertaining to the impugned Form-III Eviction Notice dated 06.02.2026 issued by the 3rd respondent, quash the same as being illegal, arbitrary and without jurisdiction.

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For Petitioners: Mr.S.Gunaseelan in all WPs For Respondents: Mr.A.Selvendran, Spl. Govt. Pleader in all WPs

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Order

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(Order of the Court was made by S.M.Subramaniam J.)

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The present Writ Petitions have been instituted challenging notices issued by the competent authorities under the provisions of “the Tamil Nadu Protection of Tanks and Eviction of Encroachment Act, 2007 (Tamil Nadu Act 8 of 2007)” {hereinafter “Tanks Act” for the sake of brevity}.

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The authorities, during inspection found that the subject property has

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been classified as “Government Poromboke Canal” which is a water body. Thus, the notices came to be issued to the encroachers for removal by following procedures.

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The learned counsel for the petitioners would submit that a portion of the property is not a water body and therefore, the Assistant Engineer, Public Works Department, Water Resources Organization, is not the competent authority.

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Page2 of 5

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

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WP No. 13133 of 2026 etc., batch

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If at all the petitioners possess any such documents to establish that

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the subject property is not a water body, they are at liberty to submit those documents along with their explanation, if any, defending their case. However, no writ against a show cause notice is entertainable and the authorities must be provided with an opportunity to adjudicate the issues on merits by affording an opportunity to the alleged encroachers. This being the procedure, petitioners are at liberty to submit their respective explanation along with documents, if any, to the respondents and on receipt of the same, the competent authority shall consider the representation, take a final decision and pass appropriate orders and thereafter, proceed with the enforcement action in respect of the water body. The said exercise shall be completed within a period of twelve weeks from the date of receipt of a copy of this order.

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With the above direction, these Writ Petitions stand dismissed . Consequently, connected miscellaneous petitions are closed. There shall be no order as to costs.

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(S.M.S.,J.) (K.S.,J.) 09-04-2026

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Index: Yes/No Speaking/Non-speaking order Neutral Citation: Yes/No

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DSA

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__________ Page3 of 5

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

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WP No. 13133 of 2026 etc., batch