Social activist ‘Traffic’ Ramasamy has asked the High Court of Madras to consider relocating the MGR, Anna and Jayalalithaa Memorials on the Marina Beach in accordance with the coastal regulation zone stipulations.

The sprawling Marina has Memorials of Annathurai, M.G. Ramachandran and J. Jayalalithaa, all former chief-ministers. The memorials have taken up around 200 acres. Govt. of Tamil Nadu is planning to renovate Jayalalithaa’s make-shift Memorial with a pucca structure.

In this backdrop, Ramasamy filed a petition with the High Court of Madras requesting it to direct the State to relocate the MGR, Anna and Jayalalithaa memorials from the Marina. “The Memorials occupy huge space and the Govt. is also planning to erect a grand Memorial for Jayalalithaa. As per stipulations of coastal regulation zone, no structure should be built within 500 metres from the seashore.

“It is a huge violation of the Centre’s Act. I request the Court to ask the State to relocate Anna, MGR and Jayalithaa memorials to the Gandhi Mandapam in Guindy,” his petition said. Taking it up, a Bench comprising Chief Justice Indira Banerjee directed the State to respond to the petitioner’s views within the next two weeks.