The Madras High Court on Thursday restrained State Minister for Public Works E.V. Velu and Jeeva Educational Trust, managed by his son E.V. Kumaran, from installing a statue of former Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi on the Girivalam (circumambulation) path around the Arunachaleswarar temple in Tiruvannamalai town.
Justices S.M. Subramaniam and J. Sathya Narayana Prasad granted the interim injunction since the Collector failed to file a report, as directed by the court on Wednesday, explaining whether any public property had been encroached upon for the installation of the statue as alleged by a public interest litigation petition.
On Thursday, the Collector told the court he would be able to file a report on the issue only after collecting the details from the Superintendent of Police, District Revenue Officer, Divisional Engineer of the Highways Department, Revenue Divisional Officer, Tahsildar and the Block Development Officer and therefore, required time.
