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ShareAhmedabad: The Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation is carrying out its biggest and most ambitious demolition drive in the last 9 years. But, amid controversy over the demolition of illegal constructions in the city, a division bench of Gujarat high court has stayed action of the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC) to demolish buildings situated on posh CG Road.
Acting on a writ petition filed by four shop-owners of 'Shilp' building on CG Road, the bench, comprising justices Bhagwati Prasad and SR Brahmbhatt, has stayed the demolition activity of the civic body till the next hearing on Monday.
Members of 'Shilp' and owner of the Nalanda Hotel approached the high court after the AMC launched its demolition drive and started razing constructions alleged to be illegal. Senior advocate Yatin Oza and Shrusti Thula, counsels of property holders, submitted that the petitioners have been occupying the shops for over 20 years now and have been regularly paying property tax to the AMC.
The counsels also submitted that the building in question was constructed after the owners obtained the building use (BU) permission from the AMC. Permission was also granted by the Town Planning Authority in 1986 under the provisions of the Bombay Provincial Municipal Corporation Act.
In fact, the BU Permission also stated that the basement of the building has safe deposit vault and parking space.The petitioners claimed that the authorities had full knowledge of their plans, and details regarding construction of the basement were already provided to the respondent authorities, and was also duly sanctioned by them.
BU permission was also given to the president of Shilp Members Association and Shilp Housing Association in 1986. They therefore claim that the construction is legal. The counsels also submitted that the AMC started demolishing buildings and shops without adhering to the set procedure.
The structure on the whole is not illegal. The AMC is raising questions about the walls erected inside shops or the minor modifications made internally by the owners to make best use of the available space.
The petitioners allege that the decision to make minor changes on their own property is entirely theirs and cannot come under the purview of the civic body. Moreover, the civic body initiated the action without serving prior notice.
The AMC started its demolition activity at Nalanda Hotel in Mithakhali. Ashish Desai, counsel of Nalanda Hotel, argued that the hotel management had already paid impact fee of Rs3 lakh for the extended construction on the premises that was built in 1992.
Meanwhile, property owners in the Nikol area have also approached the high court against the proposed demolition activity. Apurva Kapadia, counsel of the traders, argued that the AMC is intending to demolish structures based on survey number 233/1, but they have already paid impact fee in 2004 to regularise illegal construction and an application to regularise the structure is still pending before the civic body.
