Hyderabad: Dealing with the large number of pending cases for directions to municipal authorities to regularise illegal constructions by compounding violations, a single judge of the Telangana High Court referred the matter to a division bench saying that it is the appropriate bench to decide whether such pleas can be allowed or not.
Justice Challa Kodanda Ram was dealing with a plea by Nirmal resident Are Rajanna seeking to direct the commissioner of the local municipality to consider and regularise unauthorized constructions which had been build in violation of the sanctioned plan, under Section 340 of the Telangana Municipalities Act, 1965.
The petitioner obtained building permission for three floors from the authorities and constructed an additional floor. When the authorities issued notices for deviation to the sanctioned plan, he approached the court for regularisation. At the time of hearing, counsel for the petitioner referred to the orders of another single judge issued in 2012 in such pleas, wherein under Section 340 of the Act, the authorities were directed to compound the offence committed by the petitioners.
Justice Kodanda Ram was not inclined to pass directions to the authorities, relying on the earlier directions. The judge was concerned over regularisation or condonation of violation made in constructions as they violated the systematic and organised development of society.
He observed, “The very scheme of regularisation without regard to the original master plan prepared, based on scientific and engineering parameters and prescribing the requirement of obtaining permission, becomes redundant, if, on an individual basis, regularisation is permitted. If every violation is to be compounded, there is no requirement for building norms to be fixed.”
In view of the orders issued by the single judge in 2012, which were in direct conflict with the orders of the full bench, Justice Kodanda Ram opined that it was appropriate to place the issue before the division bench of this court. He directed the Registry of the High Court to place the matter before the acting Chief Justice.
