Tiruchy City Crime Branch has registered a case against a DMK functionary and five others over the alleged transfer of a multi-crore-worth 7,515 sq ft plot of land belonging to the Sri Ranganathaswamy Temple in Srirangam using fraudulent documents.
50 crores of temple land transferred illegally to DMK office bearer and used for party office.
Land belongs to Srirangam Ranganathaswamy. #DmkLoot pic.twitter.com/4s6p8w5KZV— रंगा – ரங்கா அய்யங்கார் (@ranganaathan) September 19, 2026
The accused were identified as M Ramkumar from Thiruvanaikoil, Srirangam DMK area secretary; Padma Rengarajan from Chennai; Vijaya Krishnasamy from Bangalore; R Soundararajan from Chennai; R Venkata Varadhan; and the then Srirangam sub-registrar.
#JUSTIN || கோவில் நிலம் அபகரிப்பு – திமுக பிரமுகர் மீது வழக்கு | #SriRangam | #Trichy | #DMK | #PolimerNews pic.twitter.com/7wMxmvWfac
— Polimer News (@polimernews) September 19, 2026
The FIR was registered under Sections 420, 465, 467, 468, 471 and 120(B) of the IPC, relating to cheating, forgery, use of forged documents and criminal conspiracy, on September 13 based on a complaint from S Sivaramkumar, Joint Commissioner of the Srirangam temple.
FIR against Ram Kumar, a DMK functionary now for allegedly grabbing temple land in Srirangam and building party office there. pic.twitter.com/M1INdBJcSi
— Vasudha Venugopal (@Vasudha156) September 19, 2026
The FIR says, “7,515 sq ft of land is part of a larger 5.87-acre property belonging to the Srirangam temple. The temple administration said historical settlement records and other documents establish the temple’s ownership of the property. A portion of the larger property is being used by a government hospital, which pays rent to the temple,” the FIR says. It may be noted that a DMK office has been functioning on the disputed 7,515 sq ft land.
It said, “Padmaja Rengarajan and Vijaya Krishnasamy sold the 7,515 sq ft land to Ramkumar for Rs 1.45 crore in December 2022, claiming that they had rights over the property. The temple administration said the documents used for the transaction were forged and that the two did not have rights over the land.”
Trichy City CCB has registered an FIR over the alleged use of forged documents to deal with 7,515 sq.ft of #Srirangam Ranganathaswamy Temple land. M. Ramkumar, identified in the FIR as the then Srirangam #DMK area secretary, is named as Accused No.1. Five others, including the… pic.twitter.com/X1wXsj6RSD
— Harish M (@chnmharish) September 19, 2026
Explaining the land transfer, the FIR said, “Soundararajan, the brother of Padma Rengarajan and Vijaya Krishnasamy, also claimed a share in the property and executed a sale deed in favour of Ramkumar after receiving Rs 72.5 lakh. A correction deed was later registered in January 2023,” based on the FIR.
The third property transfer, as per the FIR, states, “Similarly, Venkata Varadhan claimed a share in the property and executed another sale deed in favour of Ramkumar after receiving Rs 72.5 lakh, according to the FIR. A correction deed was later registered in connection with the transaction.” The three sale transactions involved a total of Rs 2.90 crore, according to the FIR.
The temple administration, fully aware that this was temple property, allegedly acted together and created documents claiming private ownership of the property. The FIR claims that Ramkumar used his position as a DMK functionary while dealing with the property. It also alleged that the Srirangam sub-registrar registered the sale and correction deeds despite being alerted by the temple administration that the property belonged to the temple and should not be registered.
Journalist Rahul Sivashankar questioned, “Would the political and media response be the same if the alleged encroachment involved a temple associated with any other political ideology? And why does the ‘Brahminical oppression’ argument so often become a shield when Dravidian politics collides with the sanctity of temples or Sanatana itself?”
RAM TEMPLE DONATION SCAM: NATIONAL HEADLINES FOR WEEKS.
BUT A Rs 50-CRORE TEMPLE LAND LOOT ALLEGATION? STRANGELY IGNORED.
An FIR has been filed against N. Ram Kumar, a DMK functionary from Srirangam, TN. Police allege he encroached on Ranganathaswamy Temple land worth ₹50… pic.twitter.com/izMrRS9m16
— Rahul Shivshankar (@RShivshankar) September 19, 2026
BJP functionary Selvakumar said, “DMK’s temple land grabs must be punished, every one of them. TVK govt seems to be exposing one by one, which is good move. But the TVK government’s give-away of 3,084.95 acres belonging to four Karur temples, worth Rs 25,000 crore, in a single order on 9 July 2026 will remain the topmost temple land heist forever.”
DMK's temple land grabs must be punished, every one of them. TVK govt seems to be exposing one by one, which is good move.
But the TVK government's give away of 3,084.95 acres ers belonging to four Karur temples, worth ₹25,000 crore, in a single order on 9 July 2026 will remain… https://t.co/UJ471hCvtu
— Selva Kumar (@Selvakumar_IN) September 19, 2026
Main accused Ramkumar said, “There is nothing wrong with this matter. The land belongs to private persons and was properly registered after the then sub-registrar checked the documents. The matter is already pending before the High Court.”
The Apex Court in January 2024 stayed the Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court ruling in favour of the Ranganathaswamy temple administration in the property ownership dispute between the temple and a section of residents.
A Division Bench comprising Justices MM Sundresh, Aravind Kumar and SVN Bhatti ordered the issuance of notice and granted a stay while passing orders on an SLP filed by a group of affected residents under the banner of Sri Rangam Adimanai Urimai Meetpu Kuzhu in 2023.
According to reports, the Madras High Court had previously ruled in favour of the Sri Ranganathaswamy Temple administration in Srirangam regarding an ownership dispute over roughly 329 acres of land, directing action concerning temple properties. However, the legal status has since seen further developments, including a Supreme Court stay on specific lower court orders and ongoing local inquiries into land transfers.
Critics say, “Under the successive Dravidian rule, a large portion of temple properties were alienated, grabbed by fraudulent means, and temple income was squandered. Whenever DMK comes to power, land-grabbing charges would automatically come as a bonus. There have been attempts to give patta and ownership to encroachers during DMK and AIADMK rule. The TVK govt has recently initiated few positive measures to recover the temple properties. It acted swiftly on a 1.4-acre devotee parking lot at the Palani Murugan Temple foothills belonging to the Arulmigu Dhandayuthapani Swamy Mutt, valued at Rs 100 crore. Arrests were made, including the sub-registrar and others.”
They point out the recent actions of HR and CE after May 2026 over alleged illegal registrations, encroachments and disputes over temple-linked properties in Madurai, Palani and Karur.
Madurai City Central Crime Branch registered an FIR on July 25 against 19 people, including former revenue officials and sub-registrars, over the alleged illegal transfer and registration of about 1.79 acres of land linked to a trust meant for services at the Arulmigu Meenakshi Sundareswarar Temple and the nearby Alagar (Kallalagar) Temple. The two temple divisions, located at Chokkikulam, are estimated to have a market value of around Rs 600 crore.
