Chennai. Tamil Nadu Chief Minister and actor C. Joseph Vijay (Thalapathy Vijay) has received relief from the Madras High Court in a nearly 17-year-old dispute related to land allotment in Chennai. The court dismissed a petition challenging the land allotted to him by the Tamil Nadu Housing Board in Padi area. The court held that this land was given to Vijay as an alternative plot in exchange for another property purchased earlier and there was no illegal process or irregularity in the allotment.
Land was allotted in 2008
The case pertains to a 11,854 square feet plot of land located in Padi area of Anna Nagar Western Extension, Chennai. The Housing and Urban Development Department of Tamil Nadu had issued an order on 4 March 2008 to allot this land to Vijay.
This allotment was given to Chennai resident R. Karthikeyan had challenged it in the Madras High Court in October 2009. He claimed that in 1969, the government had acquired 2.37 acres of land belonging to his late father Rathinapandiyan for a housing scheme. His allegation was that a portion of the acquired land remained unused for a long time and was later allotted to Vijay. The petitioner had demanded return of the land and cancellation of the allotment.
The plot was given in exchange of Ashok Nagar land
Vijay had told the court that he had purchased about eight acres of land in Ashok Nagar area during a public auction in February 2002. Building planning permission was sought to build a multiplex there, but the Chennai Metropolitan Development Authority refused permission due to the proposed corridor of the road project.
After this, the state government had agreed to allot an alternative plot in Padi in exchange for that land. Tamil Nadu Housing Board also confirmed the same arrangement in the court.
What did the court say?
During the hearing of the case, Justice P. Jyotimani examined the counter affidavits and related orders. The court found that the land in Padi was allotted to Vijay as an alternative plot due to his inability to use the Ashok Nagar property. The court did not find any illegality or irregularity in the allotment and R. Karthikeyan's petition was rejected.
Allegation of sale of Rs 35 crore is a separate matter
In a separate election petition regarding the commercial building built on this land, it was claimed that the property with a built-up area of 23,460 square feet was sold for Rs 35 crore on February 12, 2026. This allegation is related to the questions raised in the election affidavit regarding property details and transactions. The dismissal of the petition challenging the land allotment does not mean that the separate election proceedings related to the sale of Rs 35 crore have also ended. It is important to understand both legal matters separately.