The Supreme Court of India, on April 4, 2025, expressed strong disapproval of the unauthorized felling of three Wild Jack Trees on the premises of Thiru Keralapuram Sreekrishnaswamy Temple, located in Peroor Village, Kerala.
A bench comprising Justice Abhay S. Oka and Justice Ujjal Bhuyan was hearing an interlocutory application (IA) in an ongoing property dispute involving the temple. The matter came to light following a detailed report submitted by the District Collector of Kottayam, confirming that the trees were cut under the directions of the temple’s Administrative Committee.
“No religion permits felling of trees in such a brutal manner,”
— Justice Abhay S. Oka remarked during the hearing.
The trees in question were Wild Jack Trees, each with a substantial diameter ranging from 1.5 to 2 meters. The court questioned the temple committee's counsel on how they planned to compensate the Forest Department and how many new trees they would be planting to make up for the damage.
In defense, the counsel explained that the decision to cut the trees had been taken by the previous temple committee, and that the current committee had already planted 100 trees in compliance with the court’s earlier directive to maintain status quo. The committee also expressed willingness to plant another 100 trees.
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However, the bench was not entirely satisfied and directed the committee to file an affidavit confirming the total number of trees already planted and the compensation amount they were prepared to pay.
When the counsel mentioned that the temple was small and financially constrained, particularly due to ongoing festival preparations, the Court offered a solution:
“In this festival people will be offering something to the god, right? So whatever is offered at this festival can go to the forest department. As simple as that,”
— Justice Oka suggested.
The Court directed the committee to provide an undertaking specifying the usual amount collected through offerings during the annual festival. That amount, the Court said, should be handed over to the Forest Department as compensation.
“Somebody must plant trees and somebody must pay compensation, and somebody must take responsibility,”
— Justice Oka added.
The matter is now scheduled for further hearing on April 9, 2025, by which time the temple committee is expected to submit the required affidavit.
Background of the Case
- The ongoing dispute arises from a Special Leave Petition (SLP), where the respondent claims ownership of the land and sought to restrain the appellant from trespassing.
- The High Court ruled in favor of the respondent, leading to the present appeal before the Supreme Court.
- During the proceedings, the respondent filed an Interlocutory Application (IA) highlighting the issue of tree cutting on the temple premises.
On November 4, 2024, the Supreme Court had noted that several trees appeared to have been felled and construction activities were being carried out within the temple premises. The Court issued an ad-interim order directing the parties to maintain status quo and prohibited any further construction or tree cutting without prior permission.
To ascertain the extent of damage, the Court directed the District Collector/District Magistrate of Kottayam to assign revenue officers to:
- Visit the temple premises
- Verify how many trees were felled
- Check if proper permissions were obtained
- Review temple records
- Record statements from relevant individuals
As per the report dated December 6, 2024, the officers confirmed that three Wild Jack Trees, each about 1.5 to 2 meters in diameter, were indeed cut down by the temple’s administrative body.
The Court subsequently ordered that the status quo be maintained regarding the timber from the felled trees.
Further, on March 24, 2025, the Court extended its interim order from January 27, 2025, until the SLP is fully heard. The Court explicitly stated that no further tree felling is to occur on the temple property without express permission.
