The Calcutta High Court has issued a 30-day stay on the Kolkata Municipal Corporation’s proposed demolition of a Tollygunge building allegedly constructed on Waqf land, stopping the civic action shortly after authorities arrived at the location on Sunday.
The single-bench order was passed by Justice Raja Basu Chowdhury as civic crews, heavy machinery, and law enforcement personnel were already positioned at Satish Mukherjee Road to execute the eviction.
Legal Challenge to Short-Notice Eviction
Advocate Zohaib Rauf, representing the petitioner, informed the court that a writ petition challenging an earlier municipal show-cause notice regarding premises 51/1A and 51/1B was already pending. Despite the ongoing legal proceedings, Kolkata Municipal Corporation officers affixed demolition notices on the property walls on Saturday under Sections 544 and 546 of the Kolkata Municipal Corporation Act, 1980.
The civic notice instructed occupants that demolition activities would take place between 11:00 AM and 5:00 PM on Sunday. State legal representatives argued before the court that law enforcement was merely executing the formal requisition issued by municipal officials.
In granting the temporary relief, Justice Chowdhury noted that the petitioner became aware of the directive only after it was posted on the structure. The bench clarified that it had not evaluated the underlying merits of the order issued by the KMC Special Officer (Building), leaving the petitioner 30 days to pursue available legal remedies while the order remains untested by the appropriate authority.
Standoff and Unrest on the Ground
Tension mounted in the Tollygunge neighborhood early Sunday morning as bulldozers arrived along with officials from the municipal corporation, the Calcutta Electric Supply Corporation Limited, local police, and central forces. Affected residents gathered in the streets to oppose the drive, reporting that they had been instructed to clear out overnight without adequate time to arrange alternative shelter.
During the standoff, a man identified as Kumar Saha alleged that he was assaulted and chased away by local residents while attempting to inspect the targeted premises. Saha stated that the property belonged to the Waqf board and had previously functioned as a Trinamool Congress party office. His relationship to the property or any state administrative body could not be verified.
