Hyderabad: The Hyderabad High Court has directed the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation to demolish all portions of two buildings owned by family members of Qutubullapur MLA K.P. Vivekananda, which were constructed in violation of the sanctioned plans. It also asked the authorities to submit a report along with photographs of the demolition by June15, with the Registry.
Justice C.V. Nagarjuna Reddy passed the orders on a petition by one K.M. Pratap, a resident of Qutubullapur, who had alleged that the MLA and his family members had constructed a huge commercial structure adjacent to his plot without GHMC permission.
The judge directed the GHMC commissioner to identify and initiate departmental proceedings against the officers who were responsible for dereliction of their duties pertaining to failure to inspect and stop the illegal construction, and file his report with the Registry on or before June 15.
While refusing the plea of the Narayana Educational Society, which is running a college in the illegal portions of the building to grant time to vacate the premises, the judge asked them to vacate the building by June 1.
Passing the final orders, the judge pointed out: "This case presents a paradigm of a law-maker himself breaking law, not by accident but by design. Though not acceptable, a common man may plead the excuse of violating the law due to ignorance. Can a legislator behave like a common man, violate the law with impunity and get away with it by virtue of the position he occupies? These are the questions troubling this court."
Finding fault with the attitude of the authorities in taking action against the illegal structure and also their response towards the court when it sought an affidavit from the GHMC on the plea, the judge said, "It is this kind of cold approach in taking action against the brazen violation of laws by haves, that is creating a feeling in the minds of the have-nots that law is meant to be enforced only against the latter and not against the former."
