Violating rules with
impunity
From
Ravi S. Singh
Tribune News Service
GURGAON, Dec 1 In
gross violation of rules and regulations, a private
builder, in collusion with government authorities, is
erecting a multi-crore commercial plaza in the heart of
Gurgaon.
The site of the plaza on
Jharsa road is located near the office of the Municipal
Council and the residences of the Commissioner, Gurgaon
Division, the Deputy Commissioner and the Superintendent
of Police. Also, the road is one of the main routes which
VIPs take to go to the town from the National Highway.
It is a point in case of
the nexus of builders/land mafia high-ups in government
circles and politicians. Sources said that the State
Vigilance Bureau of Haryana has received a complaint on
the issue and was investigating the case.
The status of the site,
falling in a residential area, was first changed by the
Municipal Council vide a resolution at its meeting on
July 22 by invoking Section 13 of the Haryana Municipal
Act, 1973. The site falls in the Housing Board Colony.
The Housing Board had handed over the colony and the
areas falling in it to the jurisdiction of the Municipal
Council long time back.
Two brothers bought two
sites, each measuring 200 square yards. The general
impression is that the manner in which the Municipal
Council went about converting the status of the land was
with a view to help in the commercial construction to
come up.
However, while
constructing the plaza the builders flagrantly violated
building byelaws. One of them was not leaving a certain
amount of open space, especially a parking place. The
Municipal Council issued a notice to the builders on
November 13 in connection with the violation. The
builders ignored the notice and continued the
construction of the plaza. After more than 15 days, the
Municipal Council today sent another notice. But in the
meantime the complex has been completed. Now the
authorities express helplessness even after sending
notices to the culprits.
Residents here wonder why
the authorities concerned did not intervene more
aggressively in the face of violation of rules even after
the notice to the culprits by the Municipal Council. The
authorities could have played a more active role than
simply completing the formality of sending notices and
looking the other way allowing the construction to be
completed. The authorities of the Municipal Council
justified their passive role by saying that they could
have acted only after 15 days of the first notice.
Inquiry into the case
revealed that after the first notice by the Municipal
Council, and during the mandatory 15 days for an
explanation to it from the concerned party, the builders
approached the authorities offering to compromise.
Significantly, the offer was at the time when the
construction was partly completed. The Municipal Council
apparently took a high moral stand rejecting the offer.
It further took the stand that the builders would have to
first leave the stipulated open space in the plaza. Many
wonder what use this stand of the authorities would be
after the construction was now completed. The violators
of rules could now move the court against any order of
demolition.
When asked why the
Municipal Council did not play a more aggressive role,
its Executive Officer, Mr Krishan Kharab, said that the
local body did not have sufficient manpower to undertake
the work of demolition. By implication, the plaza would
not be demolished even after the Municipal Council has
completed the ritual of sending notices.
The builders appear to
have also violated the rules concerning the number of
storeys in the plaza. According to the rules permission
can be granted for constructing only two and a half
storeys. The authorities asserted that the plaza has only
two floors i.e basement, ground, first and second floor.
Hence, according to them, the number of storeys was
within the stipulations. However, there are any number of
persons who say that the "so called" basement
in the plaza was not true to description as a major
portion of it was jutting out of the ground. According to
them, the ground floor was a farce as it conformed to the
normal description of first floor.
The issue of the basement
and the ground floor assumes significance when considered
that more than dozen shops can be housed in the basement
and an equal number on all the floors.
According to sources, the
former Deputy Commissioner, Mr Devender Singh, had raised
certain obstructions in the case. The construction,
however, began immediately after his transfer.
Another controversy has
been kicked up on the issue. This pertains to the penalty
to be imposed on the culprits. The municipal authorities
say that it would be 5 per cent to 15 per cent of the
cost of construction. Some say it is 5 per cent to 15 per
cent of the entire cost of the project including the
land. Either way, the culprits will be the gainer.
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