Madras HC appoints retired judge as administrator of MGR's properties

The Madras High Court on Thursday appointed Justice (retired) D Hariparanthaman as the administrator of the trust and properties of former Chief Minister M G Ramachandran.

He has to file a comprehensive report within eight weeks on inspection of all the properties and accounts, the court said while hearing a batch of impleading, substitution and appointment petitions.

Earlier, relatives of MGR, Latha Rajendran, M.C.Chandran and M.Swaminathn along with others had filed the petitions over MGR's properties.

Justice M M Sundresh said it was clear from MGR's will that he did not want a property dispute between his relatives. Unfortunately, what he apprehended and wanted to avoid could not be done as a number of proceedings have been initiated by his relatives over the properties left by him, the judge said.

He had only nominated two persons-- senior counsel N.C.Raghavachari and Rajendran as executors and the second one was to succeed the first one. However, he did not name any other person thereafter and he left the discretion with the court to appoint an executor as per law.

The court said Latha Rajendran could not be as a matter of right herself be appointed. She was not even a beneficiary. Merely because her husband was an executor, she cannot claim it as a matter of right, the court said.

If that was the case, even the legal representatives of the deceased N.C.Raghavachari could make such a claim, the court said. Merely because the applicant's husband was the executor or the other having been an erstwhile lessee of one of the properties or just being son of brother of MGR, no right was created for the appointment as an administrator.

The court also said it could not go into the allegations and counter allegations filed against Latha Rajendran now.

"After all, an administrator is required to see to it that the last wishes of MGR are complied with in letter and spirit," the court said.