M. SATHYANARAYANAN & T.S. SIVAGNANAM, JJ.

The petitioner, Secretary of a political party, has filed this Writ Petition designed as a Public Interest Litigation praying for a direction upon the Collector, Chennai District and the Collector, Thiruvallur District, respondents 3 and 4 herein to grant patta and regularize the encroachment in Survey Nos.1, 2 and 4 (Parts) in No.60, Menambedu Village and in Survey No.813 in No.61, Korattur Village, Ambattur Taluk in terms of Government Orders in G.O.Ms.No.854, dated 30.12.2006, read with G.O.Ms.No.579, dated 03.10.2008, issued by the Secretary to Government of Tamil Nadu, Department of Revenue, the first respondent in terms of the decision of the Division Bench of this Court in the case of Sivakasi Region Tax Payers Association vs. State of Tamil Nadu reported in 2008 (5) MLJ 1425.

2. Before we go into the point of reference laid before the Full Bench, it would be necessary to have a prelude on the factual scenario. The petitioner seeks to canvass the case of the encroachers in the lands in question and seeks for a direction to the Revenue Authorities to grant patta to them in accordance with the Government Orders dated 30.12.2006 and 03.10.2008. The petitioner is said to have submitted a representation on 17.12.2007 to the Hon'ble Chief Minister to grant patta to the encroachers in lakes/water bodies, which no longer retain the characteristic of a water body. On 18.06.2008, a representation was submitted with reference to the subject encroachment in Korattur Eri and a request was made for grant of patta by reclassifying the land in question. The petitioner would state that Greater Chennai consists of Chennai Corporation area and about 176 sq.kms of Thiruvallur District and 376 sq.kms of Kancheepuram District. It is further stated that North Chennai area extends to about 464.53 sq.kms and the density of the population is quite high. The petitioner would state that the Government issued G.O.Ms.No.854, which was a great reprieve for the weaker sections of the society and about 40,000 families submitted applications for grant of patta. Though G.O.Ms.No.854 was a one time scheme for regularizing the encroachments, subsequently, vide G.O.Ms.No.579, the scheme was extended upto 30.09.2009. The petitioner would state that the encroachers in the subject area had also submitted applications for grant of patta in terms of G.O.Ms.No.854 and when those applications were pending, eviction notices were issued to the encroachers between November 2007 and July 2008 stating that the encroachment is in a water body and this notice appears to have been issued pursuant to directions of the First Bench in W.P.No.25776 of 2006 and W.P.No.17915 of 1993, dated 04.10.2007. Those Writ Petitions were filed as Public Interest Litigations seeking for Writ of Declaration to declare the encroachments in water bodies and water courses, construction made thereon either with permission of the State by way of reclassification or issuance of patta or without permission of the State to be declared illegal, unconstitutional and crime against mankind and consequently for direction to remove all types of encroachment, restore all water bodies or water course to their original shape, size, capacity etc., and to initiate departmental and/or criminal action against the erring officials. The Writ Petition were disposed of by issuing the following directions:-

7. Having considered the difficulties expressed by the learned Government Pleader in carrying out the process of removal of encroachments, we pass the following the order:

(i) The secretaries, Public Works Department, in consultation with the respective District Collectors, are directed to decide the programme of evicting the encroachments in the water bodies falling in Categories 'A' and 'B' referred to above, by the end of November, 2007 and complete the process of removal of above, by the end of May, 2008. (emphasis supplied)

(ii) The State Government is at liberty to