Notably, the CA, Pankaj Karnavat, had moved an appeal before the division bench of Chief Justice Vikram Nath and Justice SR Brahmbhatt against the order passed by the single-judge bench of Justice JB Pardiwala
A division bench of the Gujarat High Court on Friday stayed the demolition order passed by a single-judge bench directing a chartered accountant (CA) to bring-down a multi-storied commercial complex constructed by him inside a residential society in Surat for violating bye-laws of the society.
Notably, the CA, Pankaj Karnavat, had moved an appeal before the division bench of Chief Justice Vikram Nath and Justice SR Brahmbhatt against the order passed by the single-judge bench of Justice JB Pardiwala.
The division bench while admitting the appeal stayed the single-judge’s order which directed the Karnavat to bring down the entire construction at his own cost in four-weeks. The latter had also directed the Surat Municipal Corporation to demolish the construction, if Karnavat fails to do so, and recover the cost from him.
Senior advocate Yatin Oza along with Amit Thakkar appeared for Karnavat and informed the court that the building in question cannot be treated as a commercial building merely because it houses the offices of Karnavat and his lawyer wife.
They contended that the offices of a CA and lawyer cannot be treated as “commercial”. It was also contended that the building is not a high-rise and is as per the General Development Control Regulations (GDCR) and provisions of the Town Planning Act.
On the contrary, the counsel for the society supported the judgment of the single-judge and argued that Karnavat cannot be allowed to operate the commercial structure inside a residential society as it was in contravention of norms.
The division bench after hearing the arguments of both sides stayed the demolition order. It also permitted Karnavat to use the ground floor of the building as offices and the first and second floors as a residence.
Apparently, the dispute pertains to a bungalow that was sold in Madhavnagar Co-operative Housing Society in Surat. The original owner Niranjanaben Patel sold the bungalow No 40 to Karnavat after taking due permission from the society.
Karnavat was made a new member and agreed to follow the rules of society. However, later he decided to demolish the bungalow and construct a residential low-rise.
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