Chennai: The SRM group had started removing its own encroachments in 7 acres puramboke land, worth over Rs 70 crore, of Thangal lake at Kattangulathur in Kancheepuram district after revenue department slapped a notice on August 31.
“We have given them 14-days time to remove the encroachment from the land. If they don’t do it in stipulated time we will remove and take back the land, which is located on GST Road. They had started to remove their encroachments,” said revenue divisional officer.
Revenue official claimed that the SRM management had encroached the land when the nearby large area was given to them for 99-years of lease. “There was allegation from various activists’ groups that the SRM had encroached the lake area. So when we checked the records found that the SRM had encroached 7 acres of area,” the revenue official said.
SRM group had been hitting the headlines since August 26 after its chairman T. R. Pachamuthu was arrested by the Chennai police in connection with the '75 crore medical seat scam.
He has been arrested under section of IPC 420 (cheating), 406 (offence of criminal misappropriation of property entrusted by someone else and 34 (act by several people of the common intention).
The police are also probing the mysterious disappearance of film producer and founder of Vendhar movies, S. Madhan who was a key person who collected money on behalf of Pachamuthu from medical seat aspirant who want to join SRM medical college.
On May 28, after Madhan ‘went missing’, a letter purportedly written by him was circulated on WhatsApp claiming he was going to Varanasi to attain ‘samadhi’.
Later, Madhan’s wife Sumalatha and other family members expressed fear before the media that the SRM group could be behind Madhan’s disappearance.
Madhan’s whereabouts are still not known.
