Actor Cowndamani’s property dispute | Madras High Court dismisses appeal filed by a building firm against him

Actor K. Goundamani wins property dispute against Sri Abhirami Foundations in Chennai, Madras High Court rules in his favor.

Tamil film actor K. Cowndamani has won yet another legal battle before the Madras High Court in a property dispute that he and his family members had been having with Sri Abhirami Foundations since 1998. The court on Thursday, March 14, 2024 dismissed an original side appeal filed by the building firm in 2021 against a single judge’s 2019 order.

A Division Bench of Justices R. Subramanian and R. Sakthivel rejected the appeal and confirmed the order passed by Justice Krishnan Ramasamy on November 26, 2019 directing the firm to hand over to the actor the possession of 5 grounds and 454 square feet of land on Arcot Road at Kodambakakkam in Chennai.

Decreeing a civil suit preferred by the actor and his family in 2011, Justice Ramasamy had also directed the builder to pay damages at the rate of ₹1 lakh per month from August 1, 2008 till the day when the property gets handed over to Mr. Cowndamani, his wife C.M. Shanthi and daughters C.M. Selvi and C.M. Sumitra.

According to the actor, he and his family members had purchased the land in question from one Nalini Bai in 1996, and thereafter, entered into a construction agreement with the appellant for building a commercial complex spread over 22,700 square feet within 15 months.

As per the contract, the actor had to pay ₹3.58 crore in instalments towards the construction cost and contractor fee. Though ₹1.04 crore was paid between March 1996 and February 1999, the construction was not carried out commensurately and the builder abandoned the project in 2003, the family claimed.

However, the firm told the court R. Premanayakam, a partner of Sri Abhirami Foundations, had obtained the power of attorney from the original landowner after paying the consideration. It was he who had executed a sale deed in favour of the actor and his family.

The firm also claimed to have spent over ₹1 crore towards vacating the tenants in the property and obtaining the building plan permission and other approvals for constructing the commercial complex. The agreement with the actor was not just for the land but also for the construction, it said.