SC asks states, HCs to act on illegal constructions

THE TOP COURT SAID THE MENACE HAS ERODED URBAN PLANNING, STRAINED CIVIC INFRA AND ENDANGERED PUBLIC SAFETY

- Utkarsh Anand

The Supreme Court has turned the spotlight on unauthorised constructions, urging high courts and state governments to act decisively against the menace that has eroded urban planning, strained civic infrastructure and endangered public safety.

A bench of justices JB Pardiwala and KV Viswanathan, while dealing with two separate matters underscored that illegal constructions were not merely private disputes but an issue of larger public interest requiring iron hand enforcement of building laws.

In the first case, arising out of Howrah in West Bengal, the bench dismissed a plea by a construction firm against a Calcutta high court order directing demolition of unauthorised portions of a building. Appreciating the “concern shown” by the high court, the bench urged it to widen its lens beyond the individual case.