Officials say owner couldn’t produce documents in given period following this newspaper’s expose; this newspaper exposed how a banner displaying photographs of Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and Dhadak Kamgar Union leader Abhijeet Rane was used at the site to deter civic action
The barricaded construction site at Vyas Wadi, Madh Island, in Malad West last month; Workers from the BMC’s P North ward demolish the structure on November 11. Pics/Samiullah Khan
On the heels of a mid-day investigation, officials from the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation’s (BMC) P North ward on Tuesday evening demolished a bungalow that was being illegally constructed at Vyas Wadi in Madh Island, Malad West.
This newspaper exposed how a banner displaying photographs of Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and Dhadak Kamgar Union leader Abhijeet Rane was used at the site to deter civic action.
According to sources, the demolition was carried out after the owner or occupier failed to produce any valid permissions despite receiving a “stop-work” notice from the civic body on October 14 under Section 354A of the Mumbai Municipal Corporation Act.
According to BMC sources, the site, located near a church and concealed behind iron sheet barricades, had been developed on open land without approval. The civic notice cited violations under Sections 337, 342, and 347 of the MMC Act, warning that the unauthorised structure would be demolished if work continued.
Locals had earlier alleged that whenever complaints were raised about the illegal construction, they were threatened by individuals invoking the names of the chief minister and union leaders. Even BMC officers inspecting the site were reportedly intimidated.
Reacting to the controversy, Rane had earlier told mid-day, “If someone has used banners for any illegal activity, strict action will be taken against them, including expulsion from the union. I do not support any illegal work.”
After mid-day’s exposé hit the stands on October 17, the BMC took decisive action and razed the entire premises, including the under-construction bungalow. An official confirmed, “The owner failed to produce any authorised documents within the given period, so the demolition was carried out at their risk and cost.”
The Bombay High Court, which had constituted a Special Investigation Team to probe Coastal Regulation Zone violations and land record tampering in Madh Island, has already expressed displeasure over the slow pace of investigation and directed full cooperation from both the BMC and Mumbai Police.
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