In Theni district, near Varusanadu, steps are being taken to evict families without pattas from 98 hill villages, including Singarajapuram, Pasumalaitheri, Keelapoosanuthu, and Melapoosanuthu.
In protest, the local people have been continuously holding demonstrations in coordination with various parties and organizations. As the protest enters its fourth day, Naam Tamilar Katchi’s chief coordinator Seeman has issued a statement.
In it, he said, “The attempt to drive out the people of 98 hill villages from their homes is tyranny! The Tamil Nadu government must fulfill the demands of the Meghamalai people protesting in Kadamalai Kundu!

It is tyranny to try to evict more than 5,000 people who have lived for generations in 98 hill villages in the Meghamalai–Varusanadu region of Theni district from their homes.
The news that many of the people who have been staging an indefinite sit-in protest in Kadamalai Kundu to protect their land and livelihood fainted yesterday is deeply distressing.
Does it not trouble the rulers that people, in fear of losing their homes, have been driven to struggle under the scorching sun? There is no disagreement that the forest must be protected.
At the same time, without separately examining the residence, livelihood, land documents, and legally claimable rights of every family living there, how is it fair to label everyone in one word as “encroachers”?
Are the homes where people live, the land they work, and the schools where children study merely entries in a census record? When fulfilling the responsibility of protecting forests, does the government also have the responsibility to protect people’s right to life and livelihood? Or not?
As this matter is under judicial review, it is the duty of the Tamil Nadu government to fully present the true situation of the hill village people and to use the legal remedies available to them. At the people’s request, the Taveka government should immediately conduct a legal review of the possibility of filing a review petition.
Claims related to forest rights, patta, and other documents should be transparently investigated, and decisions should be made after hearing the views of the affected families, in order to protect the habitats of people who have lived there since time immemorial.
The intimidation of people into leaving their homes and the unnecessary disruption of daily transportation and basic necessities must be stopped immediately. The government must ensure that those who have fainted during the protest receive the necessary medical assistance, and that essential services such as drinking water, electricity, healthcare, and education are made available without interruption to the people of the hill villages.
The TVK government should directly negotiate with the people involved in the protest and listen to their demands.
Therefore, I urge the Tamil Nadu government to immediately take the necessary legal and administrative measures to protect their habitat and livelihood, without undertaking any action to forcibly evict the people of the Meghamalai hill village from their homes.
"Naam Tamilar Katchi will firmly stand in solidarity with the people who are fighting through non-violent means for the right to live on their own land!" he has noted.
