newspop
Kolkata : The Calcutta High Court on Sunday ordered an immediate status quo on the demolition of a building in Amtala, South 24 Parganas, that houses Trinamool Congress MP Abhishek Banerjee’s Lok Sabha constituency office.
The interim order was passed by Justice Raja Basu Chowdhury during an urgent hearing on a petition filed by Leaps & Bounds, a company operating from the same premises and whose director is Abhishek Banerjee’s father, Amit Banerjee. The petitioner argued that the demolition was carried out without prior notice, making the action legally untenable.
Accepting the plea for interim relief, the court directed all parties to maintain status quo, effectively stopping any further demolition until the next hearing. It also asked the West Bengal government to file its response before the matter is taken up again.
The demolition drive had begun on Saturday after the South 24 Parganas district administration alleged that the building was constructed without an approved plan and violated building regulations. Authorities deployed police and central forces at the site, while bulldozers demolished part of the front section of the structure under the supervision of Fire and Emergency Services personnel.
State officials maintained that the action was taken strictly in accordance with administrative procedures and was based on alleged construction violations, dismissing any political motive behind the exercise.
With the High Court’s interim order now in effect, demolition work will remain suspended until further directions from the court.
