‘Apprise court about action taken against field staff’
Mohinder Verma
JAMMU, Aug 24: High Court of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh has directed the Commissioner, Jammu Municipal Corporation (JMC) to file an affidavit mentioning the major and minor violations of J&K Control of Building Operations Act (BOCA), 1988 in Green Belt Park and Gandhi Nagar areas, commercial activities being carried out from residential properties and departmental/penal action taken against the field staff of the Corporation for their act of omission and commission.
These directions have been passed by Justice Wasim Sadiq Nargal while dealing with a petition filed by Varun Mahajan and Another challenging the order passed by JMC under Section 8(1) of the Jammu and Kashmir Control of Building Operations Act, 1988.
With a view to clinch the controversy in question, High Court directed Commissioner, Jammu Municipal Corporation to file an affidavit providing information about major/minor violations in furtherance of which notices under Section 7(1) and 7(3) of the Act have been issued in Green Belt Park and Gandhi Nagar areas; total major violations liable for penal action under Section 7 of the Act of 1988 and how many residential properties subject to minor/major violations have been sealed in Green Belt Park and Gandhi Nagar areas.
Moreover, the Commissioner JMC has been directed to provide information about number of residential properties where commercial activities were under taken, have been sealed in Green Belt Park and Gandhi Nagar areas under Section 8 of J&K Control of Building Operations Act, 1988 and in how many cases, the Corporation has initiated preliminary enquiry to ascertain as to whether the field staff (Khilafwarzi Officers/ Enforcement Inspectors) were involved by way of act of omission and commission in pursuance of which minor/major violation were committed in Green Belt Park and Gandhi Nagar areas.
Justice Nargal has further directed that the court should also be informed about the departmental and penal action taken against the erring/delinquent subordinate officers with whose tactical consent the minor/major violations were committed in Green Belt Park and Gandhi Nagar areas and whether the Jammu Master plan 2032 permits change of land use in the residential colony of Gandhi Nagar and Green Belt Park if so to what extent the area of the plot can be converted from residential to commercial.
The Commissioner JMC has also been asked to apprise the High Court about commercial buildings being run in residential areas of Gandhi Nagar and Green Belt Park and whether valid permission has been accorded by the competent authority in their favour for running such commercial activities, if so, specify the dates of their establishments and permission granted.
In the meanwhile, subject to objections from the other side and till next date High Court has directed that the order No. JMC/ESTT/6211-15 dated 12.08.2023 issued under Section 8(1) of the Act of 1988 by virtue of which the respondent has sealed the premises/property of the petitioners situated at Plot No. 13, Sec. B, Block C, Gandhi Nagar shall remain stayed and respondents shall de-seal the premises of the petitioners.
“The de-sealing of the premises of the petitioners will not give any right to them to act in violation of the status quo order which has already been passed by this court in OWP No. 122/2021 and it continues to be operative as on today and the petitioners undertake to act strictly in conformity with the status quo order till it is modified or vacated”, High Court further directed.
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