The Hindu : Tamil Nadu / Chennai News : Hostile mob halts building demolition

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Saturday, Aug 19, 2006

Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu - Chennai

Hostile mob halts building demolition

Staff Reporter

High Court orders maintenance of status quo on the structure

STOPPING A VIOLATION: CMDA official supervising the demolition of unauthorised floors of a building at T. Nagar in Chennai on Friday.

CHENNAI : Chennai Metropolitan Development Authority officials demolished part of an upcoming multi-storeyed building on South Usman Road, T. Nagar, on Friday, for deviating from the approved plan.

However, they were not able to complete the work because of a hostile mob and a High Court stay order on the demolition.

Officials said plan approval had been given for T.K. Chandran to build a `stilt-parking lot' on the ground floor and four floors for commercial use by `TCS Silks.'

But the builder had gone on to construct two more floors without approval, a senior CMDA official said.

Despite being served with a notice on June 6 and a demolition notice on July 11, the builder had gone ahead with the construction.

On Friday morning, CMDA officers arrived with a group of workers to begin the demolition, but were mobbed by dozens of employees from the adjacent Chennai Silks within half-an-hour, and had their equipment taken away.

CMDA officials were visibly upset that no police help was forthcoming.

The builder, meanwhile, moved the Madras High Court, which ordered maintenance of the status quo on the structure. The demolition work was subsequently stopped.

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