HC directs Tiruvallur Collector to appear in court

: Madras High Court summoned Tiruvallur District Collector K Veera Raghava Rao for reportedly harassing and ill-treating representatives of a resident welfare association for filing a contempt of Court case against him.
Besides the Collector, the bench, comprising Chief Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul and Justice R Mahadevan, also directed C Mathivanan, Commissioner of Avadi town panchayat,to be present in court on September 8, 2015 to explain their conduct.
The bench, before which the contempt petition came up, issued the summons after going through the affidavit by Dharmarajan (74), Secretary of Senthil Nagar Welfare Association of Thirumullaivoil.
The Association had moved the court highlighting a brazen attempt to encroach a children's play space into a residential layout. In April 2015, the court had directed the collector and town panchayat commissioner to pass an order on the matter within a month, more so if any unauthorized building was coming up at the site.

The Association also claimed that a 100-year-old banyan tree had been destroyed by the encroacher who poured acid into its trunk and that only its dead trunk was seen at the site.
As no action had been taken against the encroachment within the court-stipulated time, the association filed a contempt petition. It also complained that a sub-inspector was summoning them to police station for inquiry in connection with the matter though it was pending in court.

Later,when association office-bearers led by Dharmarajan went to meet the collector,he sought to know if he was the one who filed the contempt. He also reportedly made them stand for one and half hours during inquiry though chairs were vacant.

Irked at the treatment meted out to the activist residents, the bench said: "Let the notice of contempt be issued to the collector who shall remain personally present in court on Sept 8, along with Avadi town panchayat commissioner Mathivanan."
It also conveyed to the SI hat he should stay off the case till the court takes a decision on the matter.