Man Worships Invisible God, Destroys Visible Nature: Madras HC Quashes TN Order Allotting Sand Dunes Instead Of Temple Land To School
Court noted that sand dunes are vital natural buffers and cannot be casually assigned for development
The Madras High Court has quashed a Tamil Nadu Government Order that allotted ecologically fragile sand dune land to a private school as alternate land after its property was taken back for temple purposes, holding that such a decision was arbitrary and contrary to environmental principles.
The Bench observed that sand dunes are vital natural buffers and cannot be casually assigned for development, remarking that ‘man worships an invisible God and destroys a visible nature”. The Court directed the authorities to identify suitable land of comparable value near Cuddalore for the school or compensate it if such land cannot be allotted.
Justice D. Bharatha Chakravarthy observed, “When this land of the petitioner is taken back for the Temple purposes and instead Sand Dunes is given as alternate land, it is apt to quote Hubert Reeves who said – ‘Man is the most insane species. He worships an invisible God and destroys a visible Nature. Unaware that this Nature he’s destroying is this God he’s worshiping’. This case is a clear example. Without realising that these Sand Dunes are also the incarnation of Lord Sri Devanatha Swami, who protects its land and people, the authorities deemed it fit to allocate to the petitioner, for development. In their endeavour to protect the sentiments of the devotees of the Temple, they had attempted to give away God himself. Without considering the ecological importance of the sand dunes, the Government acted recklessly, in violation of the public trust doctrine imposed upon it”.
Father Xavier Arulraj, Senior Counsel appeared for the petitioner and J. Ravindran, Addl. Advocate General appeared for the respondent.
The petitioner school had purchased about 5.77 acres of land in Koothapakkam village in Cuddalore district in 1979 from the government. However, objections were later raised claiming that part of the land historically belonged to the temple Arulmigu Devanatha Swami Temple.
In the matter, during earlier litigation, the school agreed, in the interest of communal harmony to give up the disputed land provided the State allotted suitable alternative land for running the educational institution. Acting on this understanding, the Court had earlier directed the government to allot not less than 4½ acres of accessible land near Cuddalore town.
Instead of providing comparable land, the State issued G.O. Ms. No. 414 dated 01-07-2025, offering the school 4.5 acres of government poramboke land classified as sand dunes in Bhuvanagiri Taluk, about 34 km away from Cuddalore and lacking proper road access.
Therefore, the school challenged the order, arguing that the value of the new land was only about ₹2.17 crore, while the resumed land was valued at ₹8.14 crore. Further that the land was unsuitable for an educational institution.
The Court strongly criticised the government’s decision, remarking that sand dunes are critical ecological systems that protect coastal areas from storms and serve as habitats for flora and fauna.
The Court also invoked the public trust doctrine, referring to the Supreme Court’s judgment in Intellectuals Forum, Thirupathi Vs. State of Andhra Pradesh and Ors. (2006) 3 SCC 549, emphasising that the State holds environmentally sensitive lands in trust for the public.
Cause Title: St. Josephs Matriculation Higher Secondary School v. The Additional Chief Secretary & Ors. [Neutral Citation: 2026:MHC:991]
Appearances:
Petitioner: Father Xavier Arulraj, Senior Counsel for M/s.Father Xavier Associates.
Respondents: J. Ravindran, Addl. Advocate General, S.Senthil Murugan, Spl. Govt. Pleader.