On September 9, the BMC demolished part of Kangana Ranaut’s Pali Hill bungalow
Bombay:
The Bombay High Court asked on Friday whether all of the structures in actor Kangana Ranaut’s bungalow that the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) demolished on September 9 were under construction, or if they existed earlier.
A division bench of Judges SJ Kathawalla and RI Chagla, hearing the actor’s petition against the demolition, also asked why the BMC had demolished several structures on the ground floor.
According to the BMC, Ms Ranaut had made several unauthorized modifications to her Pali Hill bungalow which were first noticed on September 5.
The court wanted to know if any modifications, illegal or not, existed before that, because under section 354A of the Mumbai Municipal Company Act, the BMC can only stop illegal construction “in progress”.
Ms Ranaut has previously stated in her amended petition that she has photos of a poop ceremony held in January 2020 and photos from the Elle Dcor magazine issue from April to May 2020 that show demolished parts existed at the time.
Therefore, BMC’s claim that illegal work was taking place was false, according to its plea.
The actor claimed that she did not do any illegal construction, and whatever changes were made, they existed before the BMC action.
Ms Ranaut’s attorney, lead attorney Birendra Saraf, told the judiciary on Friday that when the civic body served a notice of demolition, only waterproofing work was underway and she had the necessary permits for it.
“Notwithstanding the fact that there was never any illegal work carried out, the parties which the BMC characterized as illegal constructions in progress existed before the time when the illegality was allegedly detected,” Saraf said.
He also pointed out that the photos submitted to court by the BMC on Friday did not have a digital timestamp but only a note dated September 5.
The court asked lead attorney Aspi Chinoy, who appeared for the BMC, to ask the BMC officer who took the photos to submit his phone to the court, so that it could be verified when the photos were taken. been taken.
“We will consider whether this work was a work in progress,” the court said and asked Ms Ranaut’s lawyer to inform, on the following date, whether all the demolished parts existed in the same form in January 2020 .
The court also noted that the BMC in its affidavit said that Kangana Ranaut had changed the position of the entrance to the ground floor, but that many other things on the ground floor had been demolished.
“What we are thinking is how the ground floor was demolished if there is no construction going on there. The only thing shown is that the position of the front door is modified, there is no work in progress shown on the ground floor.
“Everything they alleged in the affidavit regarding the first floor has already been done (in the past). So how did the ground floor get demolished, ”he asked.
Mr Saraf said all the action was malicious, which was proven by the fact that the BMC acted after Ms Ranaut made critical remarks about the government of Maharashtra.
The arguments will continue on Monday.
