The Bombay High Court deemed the development “patently illegal and unauthorised” and ordered the demolition of seven floors of the Shivanjali Co-operative Housing Society, an eight-story residential structure in Khar West.
Rafique Kabani, the petitioner who lives on the eighth floor, has also been fined Rs 50,000 by the court for “misleading the court and making selected disclosures” in order to obtain an interim stay on the demolition order.
The court observed that the records unequivocally demonstrated that the building’s May 1993 commencement certificate (CC) was solely for the first floor’s construction. But the structure that AG Developers and Rao & Associates built had eight upper stories, a ground level, and a basement.
The ground floor and the first floor were the only parts of the building that have construction clearances, as noted by BMC attorney Rajshekhar Govilkar. He contended that despite the lack of any required compliances, such as an occupancy certificate or fire clearance, the builders and developers built seven more stories and admitted society members with impunity and total disdain for the law and rules. Govilkar went on to say that the society’s applications for the regularisation of illegal floors had been turned down by the authorities.
The BMC has been instructed by the HC to demonstrate compliance by January 6, 2025, and to execute its June 2018 notice within three months. The court stressed that constructions that are flagrantly erected in defiance of all laws and regulations should not be allowed to become the norm.
Source: The Free Press Journal
