Chennai, July 14 (IANS) The Communist Party of India (Marxist) has welcomed the Tamil Nadu government’s decision to lift restrictions on the sale of thousands of acres of inam lands in Karur district, describing the move as a significant step towards safeguarding the land and housing rights of poor and marginalised families who have lived on the properties for decades.

In a statement, CPI(M) Tamil Nadu State Executive Committee member and Tamil Nadu Farmers’ Association State President P. Shanmugam said the government order issued by the Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments (HR&CE) Department on July 9 removed the long-standing restriction on the transfer of 3,084 acres of land. The restrictions had remained in force under the Inam Abolition Act despite the lands being owned and occupied by poor families for more than 60 years.

Shanmugam said the CPI(M) State Executive Committee welcomed the government’s decision, stating that it would protect the rights of thousands of families who had been unable to freely sell, transfer or legally secure ownership of their lands because of the restrictions.

He said the order represented an important victory for people who had been seeking a permanent solution to the issue for several decades.

The CPI(M) leader also used the opportunity to launch a sharp attack on Sangh Parivar organisations, accusing them of attempting to politicise the issue.

He recalled that during the previous AIADMK regime, the Tamil Nadu government had reclaimed several temple lands and properties worth hundreds of crores of rupees that had allegedly been encroached upon by leaders associated with organisations such as the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Hindu Munnani and Hindu Mahasabha.

According to Shanmugam, historical developments had exposed what he described as attempts by Sangh Parivar groups to appropriate temple properties under the guise of protecting temples.

He alleged that the same forces were now criticising the present government’s decision because they could not accept measures that strengthened the rights of ordinary Hindu devotees and long-time occupants of the lands.

He further accused these organisations of trying to stall people’s rights through legal challenges and condemned what he termed their baseless criticism of the government order.

Calling the Karur decision only a beginning, Shanmugam said thousands of farmers and residents across Tamil Nadu continued to face similar issues relating to inam lands.

He urged the state government to treat the latest order as a model and evolve a comprehensive policy that would permanently resolve inam land disputes across the state, ensuring secure land ownership and housing rights for affected farmers and the general public.

–IANS

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