MADURAI: The controversial registration of a parcel of 1.4-acre of land, belonging to the Arulmigu Dhandapani Swami Mutt in Palani in Dindigul district and valued at over Rs 100, has been declared as null and void by Madras high court.On Wednesday, a division bench of Justice C V Karthikeyan and Justice R Sakthivel allowed an appeal by the mutt challenging the order passed by the single judge directing the sub-registrar to register the sale deed with respect to the land. The bench passed the order after taking into account that the mutt was not made as a party before the single judge and that the sub-registrar failed to consider the objections of the mutt before registering the land. In the appeal, the appellant-mutt stated that the single judge ought not to have allowed the petition in the admission stage without hearing all the necessary parties. Without impleading the appellant as a party filing the petition for the purpose of registering the property of the Dhandapani Swamigal Madam is improper and illegal.The mutt submitted that the single judge ought to have considered that the petitioners (before the single judge) suppressed the fact that the property was in the possession of Thakkar.By a separate petition, Justin Manikandan Subramanian, the sub-registrar who registered the property and who has since been booked and suspended from service for the fraudulent registration of the mutt land, moved the high court seeking anticipatory bail.In his petition, he said only based on the order of the high court did he complete the registration of the property. He said his role was limited only to the extent of the registration of the document.Justice K Rajasekar, before whom the matter came up for hearing, issued notices to the CB-CID. He posted the matter for hearing to July 17, and said the petitioner should not be arrested till then.
