HC orders Mumbai civic body to demolish unauthorised construction at Union minister Narayan Rane's bungalow

The Bombay High Court on Tuesday directed the Mumbai civic body to demolish the unauthorised construction at Union minister Narayan Rane’s bungalow in Juhu area here, noting that it violated the Floor Space Index (FSI) and Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) rules. A division bench of Justices R D Dhanuka and Kamal Khata said the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) cannot be permitted to consider and allow the second application filed by a company run by the Rane family, seeking regularisation of the unauthorised construction as it would encourage ”wholesale unauthorised constructions”.

The court directed the BMC to demolish the unauthorised parts within a period of two weeks and submit a compliance report to the court one week thereafter.

The bench also imposed a cost of Rs 10 lakh on Rane and directed for the amount to be deposited towards the Maharashtra State Legal Services Authority within two weeks.

Rane’s advocate Shardul Singh sought that the court stay its order for six weeks so that he could approach the Supreme Court in appeal.

The bench, however, rejected it.

The court dismissed the petition filed by Kaalkaa Real Estates, a company owned by Rane’s family seeking directions to the BMC to decide their second application uninfluenced by the orders passed by civic body earlier.

The BMC had in June this year rejected the regularisation application, noting that there were violations in the construction. The company filed a second application in July, saying it was seeking regularisation of a smaller portion as compared to what it had sought previously, and under new provisions of the Development Control and Promotion Regulation 2034.