HC comes to rescue of AIR

The Madras High Court has come to the rescue of All India Radio, now functioning under Prasar Bharati, by ordering status quo on orders of the state government to take back possession of lands leased to it and fixing guideline value in respect of another land granted to it on lease.
Justice T.S. Sivagnanam, before whom the petition filed by Prasar Bharati, All India Radio, New Delhi, and the Additional Director General, All India Radio and Doordarshan, Chennai, came up on Monday, ordered status quo.
It was submitted that the lease was periodically extended from 1954. All of a sudden, the state government issued orders to take back possession of the lands and fixing guideline value on another land leased to AIR.

The government orders said it required the land for construction of a building for its own Registration Department as well as the Commercial Taxes department.
Alleging that the allotment of lands to the State Registration Department and Commercial Taxes Department was done behind its back, Prasar Bharati filed the petition seeking a direction to the State Revenue Department not to interfere with the peaceful possession of land which has been in their possession for the past 60 years.
The petition also sought a stay on orders allotting the lands to Registration, Commercial Taxes Department.