It has been alleged that there are some illegal buildings on Canal East Road
More than 40 such constructions were identified, mostly in and around Keshav Chandra Sen Street, under the Amherst Street and Narkeldanga police station areas. the KMC’s report has confirmed 42 of them to be illegal While the litigants identified and listed more than 40 illegal constructions in their petition. The civic body has also been directed to submit a further report at the next hearing on Oct 14.
Chief Justice Ravindra Vithalrao Ghuge observed that illegal construction was continuing in Kolkata, as it does in Mumbai, and stressed the need for proactive action by civic authorities. If a construction is illegal, he asked, why should the civic body not demolish it itself? Police protection, he added, was a separate matter. The division bench directed the CBI to conduct a preliminary inquiry based on available documents and information collected from the municipality and police. The PIL primarily alleged rampant illegal and unauthorised construction on govt land in the city, claiming a nexus between KMC officials, police and land mafias.
Kolkata: The Calcutta High Court on Friday pulled up authorities after 42 illegal constructions in and around Keshav Chandra Sen Street surfaced during a public interest litigation hearing, questioning why the Kolkata Municipal Corporation had not initiated a suo motu probe.
This is the state or municipal body’s responsibility,” the court said. If necessary, the CBI may constitute a special investigation team, the court said. It also directed the CBI to conduct a preliminary inquiry. “Why was no suo motu probe taken up by KMC for so long? …