Kerala HC halts Malayidom Thuruth eviction for 14 days, reminds residents of legal failures

Kochi: The Kerala High Court on Monday granted a two-week extension to the ongoing execution proceedings regarding the eviction of seven Dalit families at Malayidom Thuruth near Kizhakkambalam in Ernakulam. The court accepted the Advocate General’s submission that earnest efforts are being taken by the government to sort out the issue, and a further period of two weeks may be granted so that the issue can be sorted out “without much heartburn”. The eviction has triggered widespread social and political protests over the past week.

Observing that the state government had actively intervened to find a solution, the High Court accepted the request. The bench noted that because the government is actively taking steps to address the matter, the timeline previously established by the court would be extended by an additional fortnight, after which the original petition will be reviewed again.

However, the single bench, chaired by Justice TR Ravi, sharply observed that the opposing residents cannot legally obstruct the execution of a court decree without validly establishing their legal right over the property through appropriate judicial channels.

Despite granting the temporary reprieve, the court explicitly detailed the legal shortcomings of the residents' current stance. The bench pointed out that while the respondents claim to be long-term residents who have lived in the area for three generations, they have failed to follow standard legal recourse to protect their dwellings.

The court emphasised that none of the affected individuals had approached the execution court with a formal objection petition, nor had they initiated any independent lawsuits to legally validate or enforce their claims over the disputed land.

Reacting to the argument that the residents were merely occupying their homes rather than intentionally disrupting law and order, the court observed that such arguments are legally contradictory. The bench stated that the claim of not obstructing the decree cannot coexist with the reality of occupying the property in question.

The court made it clear that for the residents to maintain possession of the property detailed in the suit, they must possess a prior, legally recognised right, and they must have attempted to enforce that right through established legal procedures. In the absence of such actions, their continued occupation legally constitutes an obstruction to the court's decree.

The High Court’s intervention follows intense standoffs at the Pariyathukavu Dalit settlement in Malayidom Thuruth. On May 20, an attempt by an Advocate Commission to execute a Perumbavoor Munsif Court eviction order - backed by nearly 400 police personnel - resulted in violent clashes, forcing the government to temporarily suspend the drive.

The eviction stems from a decades-old property dispute in which a private individual named Kannoth Sankaran Nair secured a favourable verdict that eventually stood validated up to the Supreme Court. While the lower court had previously set a strict deadline of May 23 to complete the eviction, the government's high-level talks led to a political promise to legally intervene and offer a fair rehabilitation package if the legal course fails.