Excelsior Correspondent
Srinagar, Sept 6: The High Court today sought latest status report from the authorities on those structures and buildings including shopping complexes and malls in Srinagar city which have been raised in violation of building permission and Master Plan and were sealed in 2013.
It may be mentioned here that Government had put moratorium on the structures and buildings including shopping complexes and malls in Srinagar city which have been raised in violation of building permission and Master Plan, after court directed for sealing of these structures.
The Division Bench of Chief Justice Badar Durez Ahmad and Justice Ali Mohammad Magrey while hearing the Public Interest Litigation directed the authorities to file the latest status report within a period of two weeks with regard to those illegal structures for which the Act (moratorium) provided protection but is not in force now.
Court in 2013 had issued directions for sealing of illegal complexes and malls as those buildings were raised in contravention of Master Plan and building by-laws.
In order to implement the court directions, Municipal authorities sealed those buildings and malls which had come up in violation of building laws and Master Plan but those directions were not kept in force further as the then National Conference-Congress coalition Government came with an legislation under the name of Jammu and Kashmir Civil Laws (Special Provisions) Act 2014 for protection of these structures.
The Act (moratorium) says that no building or structure raised in violation of master plan shall not be demolished or sealed till finalization of policy to deal with unauthorized construction. “……no building or structure shall be demolished or sealed, and no penalty shall be imposed in respect of such building or structure, on the ground of such building or structure having been constructed or erected in violation of master plan pending finalization of the policy under section 3”, read the Act.
The said Act came into force on March, 2014 and was enforceable up to March 2015. Thereafter the next Government PDP-BJP coalition Government in the month of April 2015 introduced a bill in Assembly seeking extension of moratorium on action against unauthorized constructions till December 2015 so as to complete the revision of Master Plan.
The Act was extended to all the areas within the jurisdiction of Srinagar Municipal Corporation, Srinagar Development Authority, Jammu Municipal Corporation as also to Jammu Development Authority. Since the extension time has also lapsed and the Act (Jammu and Kashmir Civil Laws (Special Provisions) Act 2014) is no more in force as it has lost its validity as such as per law the directions of the court with regard to sealing of unauthorized structures have become operational and the authorities (SMC) are duty bound to take steps against the unauthorized structures in terms of previous court directions.
The PIL was filed on account of public concern about large scale violations of various Acts and Building Laws prepared for planned development of Srinagar city and it has been stated in the petition that a number of buildings, commercial complexes have come up in violation of these acts and laws with tacit approval of the authorities like SMC, LAWDA and SDA.
It has been alleged in the PIL that though the officers and officials responsible for preventing illegal constructions, demolish constructions so raised in some case took half hearted steps and emboldening others to take law in their own hands and allow them to raise constructions whatever they desire to raise.
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