Kerala : Govt land to Churches, dole out continues

Thiruvananthapuram : The government has indeed proved to be vassals of Christiandom by assigning almost 7.9 acres of land free of cost to the Malankara Catholic Church in  Konni, of Pathanamthitta district, which happens to be the constituency of Revenue Minister Adoor Prakash. The move has stirred a hornet’s nest, with UDF government drawing flak from various quarters over many land-related orders. The Oommen Chandy government has always been in limelight for assigning lands on a lavish scale to religious groups and the influential bigwigs of society, as part of its appeasement policy, with a view to forthcoming elections.

Sources reveal that there are two different orders, both with the date of 4 March, 2016. Under the date, “the government has assigned 7.9 acres of land in Thannithodu village in Konni taluk to the Church, invoking section 24 of the Kerala Land Assignment Rules, 1964. The land has been assigned in five different survey numbers – 294/1, 294/1, 229/3, 244/2 and 8/2,” state sources. According to Section 24, land can be assigned only if it is for public interest. Also the order has not specified any reason for assigning 3.90 acres of land to the Church. “However, the order says that the 4.06 acres of land, which had been assigned as a school, is now functioning in the said land,” state sources.

Source : Haindava Keralam