The Madras High Court has declared that the National Commission for Scheduled Castes lacks the authority to grant injunctions, be it interim or permanent. The ruling was made in response to an interim injunction order passed by the Commission in October 2022, which restrained the Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments (HR&CE) Department from taking any further action in an anti-encroachment drive being carried out on a temple land. The bench, comprising Acting Chief Justice T Raja and Justice D Bharatha Chakravarthy, set aside the order, stating that the Commission had overstepped its authority. The Court heard a petition filed by a devotee of the temple, Jayaraman TN, who argued that the Commission had no power to issue such an injunction. The State government and petitioner relied on a 1996 Supreme Court judgment that stated that Article 338(8) of the Constitution did not grant the Commission the power to grant an order of interim injunction. The High Court ruled that the Commission lacks jurisdiction to pass such orders.
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TAGS: Madras High Court National Commission for Scheduled Castes injunctions interim injunction Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments (HR&CE) Department anti-encroachment drive temple land status quo order Jayaraman TN scheduled caste community K Sinivasan Supreme Court All India Indian Overseas Bank SC and ST Employees' Welfare Association v. Union of India Constitution authority jurisdiction petition State government devotee legal counsel.
