W.A.Nos.1119 of 2026 etc IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT MADRAS DATED: 14.07.2026 CORAM : THE HONOURABLE MR. SUSHRUT ARVIND DHARMADHIKARI, CHIEF JUSTICE AND THE HONOURABLE MR.JUSTICE G.ARUL MURUGAN W.A.No s .1119, 1120 and 1121 of 2026 and CMP N os .11154, 11155 and 11156 of 2026 W.A.No.1119 of 2026: T.D.Naidu, S/o.K.P.Naidu, Chairman and Managing Trustee, D D Medical and Educational Trust, No.7, D D Hospital Bus Stop, Chennai to Thirupathi National Highway NH - 205, Kunnavalam Post, Thiruvallur Taluk and District, Chennai - 631 210. Appellant(s) Vs 1. The Chief Secretary to Government, Government of Tamil Nadu, Secretariat, Fort St. George, Chennai - 600 009. 2. The Principal Secretary to Government, Health and Family Welfare Department, Government of Tamil Nadu, Secretariat, Fort St. George, Chennai - 600 009. 3. The Collector, Thiruvallur District, Tamil Nadu - 602 001. ______________ https://www.mhc.tn.gov.in/judis W.A.Nos.1119 of 2026 etc 4. The Tahsildar, Thiruvallur Taluk, Thiruvallur District. 5. The Block Medical Officer, Government Primary Health Centre, Katchur, Thiruvallur District. 6. The Project Director, The Tamil Nadu Health Systems Project, Department of Health and Family Welfare, Government of Tamil Nadu, 3rd Floor, DMS Annex New Building, No.259, Anna Salai, Teynampet, Chennai-600 006. Respondent(s) W.A.No.1120 of 2026: T.D.Naidu, S/o.K.P.Naidu, Chairman and Managing Trustee, D D Medical and Educational Trust, No.7, D D Hospital Bus Stop, Chennai to Thirupathi National Highway NH - 205, Kunnavalam Post, Thiruvallur Taluk and District, Chennai - 631 210. Appellant(s) Vs 1. The Chief Secretary to Government, Government of Tamil Nadu, Secretariat, Fort St. George, Chennai - 600 009. 2. The Principal Secretary to Government, Health and Family Welfare Department, Government of Tamil Nadu, Secretariat, Fort St. George, Chennai - 600 009. ______________ https://www.mhc.tn.gov.in/judis W.A.Nos.1119 of 2026 etc 3. The Collector, Thiruvallur District, Tamil Nadu - 602 001. 4. The Project Director, The Tamil Nadu Health Systems Project, Department of Health and Family Welfare, Government of Tamil Nadu, 3rd Floor, DMS Annex New Building, No.259, Anna Salai, Teynampet, Chennai-600 006. 5. The Tahsildar, Thiruvallur Taluk, Thiruvallur District. 6. The State Disaster Management Authorities, Government of Tamil Nadu, Commissionerate of Revenue Administration and Disaster Management, Ezhilagam, Chepauk, Chennai -05. 7. The Block Medical Officer, Government Primary Health Centre, Katchur, Thiruvallur District. Respondent(s) W.A.No.1121 of 2026: T.D.Naidu, S/o.K.P.Naidu, Chairman and Managing Trustee, D D Medical and Educational Trust, No.7, D D Hospital Bus Stop, Chennai to Thirupathi National Highway NH - 205, Kunnavalam Post, Thiruvallur Taluk and District, Chennai - 631 210. Appellant(s) Vs 1. The Tahsildar, Thiruvallur Taluk, Thiruvallur District. ______________ https://www.mhc.tn.gov.in/judis W.A.Nos.1119 of 2026 etc 2. The Collector, Thiruvallur District, Tamil Nadu - 602 001. 3. The Principal Secretary to Government, Health and Family Welfare Department, Government of Tamil Nadu, Secretariat, Fort St. George, Chennai - 600 009. 4. The Chief Secretary to Government, Government of Tamil Nadu, Secretariat, Fort St. George, Chennai - 600 009. 5. The Project Director, The Tamil Nadu Health Systems Project, Department of Health and Family Welfare, Government of Tamil Nadu, 3rd Floor, DMS Annex New Building, No.259, Anna Salai, Teynampet, Chennai-600 006. 6. The State Disaster Management Authorities, Government of Tamil Nadu, Commissionerate of Revenue Administration and Disaster Management, Ezhilagam, Chepauk, Chennai -05. 7. The Block Medical Officer, Government Primary Health Centre, Katchur, Thiruvallur District. Respondent(s) PRAYER : Appeals filed under Clause 15 of the Letters Patent to set aside the common order passed in W.P.Nos.12237 and 10466 of 2022 and 14535 of 2023, dated 21.08.2025 and allow the writ petitions. For Appellant(s): Mr. G.Viswanathan For Respondent(s):Mr. Mohammed Fayaz Ali Government Pleader for the Respondents. ______________ https://www.mhc.tn.gov.in/judis W.A.Nos.1119 of 2026 etc COMMON JUDGMENT (Delivered by the Hon'ble Chief Justice) The appellant has approached this court challenging an order dated 21.8.2025 passed by the learned Single Judge. 2. A reference to the sequence of events that gave rise to this appeal is necessary. (a) As the pandemic locked down the nation, the local administration sought spaces to set up isolation and care centers. The Tahsildar of Thiruvallur approached the appellant to use the campus. The appellant gave his consent. (b) The District Administration utilized the property as a screening and care facility. According to the State, the campus was formally handed back on 3.12.2020, as patient numbers dropped and alternative facilities became active. (c) The appellant insists that the State continued to occupy the premises and was preparing for subsequent pandemic waves. In support of this stand, the appellant produced letters signed by the local Tahsildar in April 2021, which purportedly acknowledged an ______________ https://www.mhc.tn.gov.in/judis W.A.Nos.1119 of 2026 etc extended stay and promised compensation under State health insurance guidelines. (d) When the claim of the appellant was placed before the District Collector, an internal investigation was launched. It was discovered that the Tahsildar had acted entirely outside his authority. The State placed the official under suspension and a formal inquiry resulted in a strict penalty of stoppage of his increment for two years with cumulative effect. (e) The learned Single Judge noted that while both sides agreed that the property was occupied by the State between April and December 2020, every other single detail, viz., how long the State stayed, what infrastructure was present, and how much money the State spent on repairs, was heavily contested. (f) As a sequel, the Single Judge directed the State to calculate a reasonable rent for those acknowledged eight months, deduct the Rs.2.02 Crores the State spent to render the buildings habitable, and pay the remaining balance to the appellant. For the rest of the massive financial claims, the learned Single Judge directed the appellant approach the Civil Court, where witnesses can be cross-examined and documents properly tested. ______________ https://www.mhc.tn.gov.in/judis W.A.Nos.1119 of 2026 etc 3.1. Learned counsel for the appellant submitted that the learned Single Judge completely misread the situation, more particularly, the fact that a structural stability certificate of April 2020 proves the buildings were perfectly fine, meaning the State's claim of spending Rs.2.02 Crores on renovations is a complete fabrication. 3.2. It is further argued that since the property was never officially discharged through a formal legal document, the State must be deemed to have stayed in possession up to 2023, entitling the appellant to full compensation plus interest under the Interest Act, 1978. 3.3. In any event, it is submitted that even the direction issued by the learned Single Judge to pay compensation for the period of eight months has not been complied with by the State till date. ______________ https://www.mhc.tn.gov.in/judis W.A.Nos.1119 of 2026 etc 4.1. Learned Government Pleader submits that a writ petition, which relies purely on sworn statements, is simply not the right legal tool to resolve a multi-hundred-crore dispute where almost every fact is disputed. 4.2. It is further submitted that the local Tahsildar had no legal authority to bind the government to massive financial liabilities, as proven by his subsequent disciplinary conviction. 5. We have carefully considered the arguments advanced by learned counsel on either side. 6. The basis of the appellant’s multi-crore claim rests on letters issued by the Tahsildar. The fact that the State actively prosecuted this official and stripped him of his increments raises a serious dispute as to the very basis of the claim made by the appellant. 7. It is well settled proposition in law that the constitutional courts do not conduct sweeping inquiries into heavily contested ______________ https://www.mhc.tn.gov.in/judis W.A.Nos.1119 of 2026 etc facts under a writ jurisdiction. In the case at hand, the appellant claims that the campus was a fully operational, world-class 3,000- bedded facility. The State says it had to step in and spend Rs.2.02 Crores just to make basic spaces usable. The appellant claims the State occupied the premises until 2023, whereas the State categorically denies this and asserts that they vacated the premises in December 2020. These disputed facts require examination of documents and hearing testimonies under oath. The Single Judge was absolutely right in not converting the writ court into a trial court. 8. The Single Judge, in fact, acknowledged the uncontested eight-month occupation and ordered the State to pay for it, subject to verifying the expenses incurred. If the appellant is of the view that the State has not paid the said amount and that the State stayed longer or owes more, it is for the appellant to invoke the provisions of the Disaster Management Act, 2005 and seek compensation or knock the door to the Civil Court, as has been directed by the learned Single Judge. ______________ https://www.mhc.tn.gov.in/judis W.A.Nos.1119 of 2026 etc 9. The appellant’s attempt to claim compensation stretching into hundreds of crores vide a summary writ proceeding cannot be countenanced. For the foregoing reasons, the writ appeals are dismissed and the order passed by the learned Single Judge is affirmed. There shall be no order as to costs. All connected interim applications are closed. (SUSHRUT ARVIND DHARMADHIKARI,CJ) (G.ARUL MURUGAN,J) 14.07.2026 Index : Yes/No Neutral Citation : Yes/No sasi ______________ https://www.mhc.tn.gov.in/judis W.A.Nos.1119 of 2026 etc To: 1. The Chief Secretary to Government, Government of Tamil Nadu, Secretariat, Fort St. George, Chennai - 600 009. 2. The Principal Secretary to Government, Health and Family Welfare Department, Government of Tamil Nadu, Secretariat, Fort St. George, Chennai - 600 009. 3. The Collector, Thiruvallur District, Tamil Nadu - 602 001. 4. The Tahsildar, Thiruvallur Taluk, Thiruvallur District. 5. The Block Medical Officer, Government Primary Health Centre, Katchur, Thiruvallur District. 6. The Project Director, The Tamil Nadu Health Systems Project, Department of Health and Family Welfare, Government of Tamil Nadu, 3rd Floor, DMS Annex New Building, No.259, Anna Salai, Teynampet, Chennai-600 006. 6. The State Disaster Management Authorities, Government of Tamil Nadu, Commissionerate of Revenue Administration and Disaster Management, Ezhilagam, Chepauk, Chennai -05. ______________ https://www.mhc.tn.gov.in/judis W.A.Nos.1119 of 2026 etc THE HON'BLE CHIEF JUSTICE AND G.ARUL MURUGAN,J. (sasi) W.A.No s .1119, 1120 and 1121 of 2026 14.07.2026 ______________ https://www.mhc.tn.gov.in/judis