HC issues notices to Nashik mayor

Mumbai, July 14 (UNI) The Bombay High Court has issued notices to the mayor of Nashik for allegedly allowing the construction of an auditorium on a piece of land that had been reserved for a garden.

The auditorium has been constructed allegedly by a public trust that is headed by the mayor himself.

A division bench comprising justices R M Lodha and D Y Chandrachud issued notices to the Nashik mayor and founder president of Shri Chatrapati Shivaji Sanskruti, Kala and Krida Mandal, Balasaheb Sanap, and the state of Maharashtra in response to a public interest litigation filed by Yogesh Madhukar Ghode and five others.

The petitioners have alleged that the Nashik mayor had permitted construction of a 2200-sq mt auditorium on 8500 sq mtrs of plot that was reserved for a garden.

Advocates Vaibhav Parshurami and Sachin Kadam, appearing on behalf of the petitioner, said the action of the mayor and civic authorities has affected public at large and deprived the residents of Nashik city of a garden.

The court was told that the apex court and the Bombay High Court in their landmark orders had restrained the politicians from alloting or using public property for the trusts headed by them.

Hence in the present case, the action of the mayor was in violation of the courts' guidelines.

The petitioner also prayed to the court for the demolition of the auditorium and restrict the plot for a garden only.

UNI XR-ARM MAZ SI BST2001