3 min readRajkotSep 15, 2024 01:41 AM IST
First published on: Sep 15, 2024 at 01:41 AM IST
The Rajkot Municipal Corporation (RMC) has served a demolition notice on jailed Rajkot town planner MD Sagathiya’s wife for alleged unauthorised construction in the under-construction bungalow of the couple.
The RMC’s town planning department served a notice on Sagathiya’s wife Bhavna Sadiya on September 6, for alleged violation of building plan while constructing the bungalow in Anamika Society near Akashwani Chowk on the posh University Road of the city. “Without permission of this office, you have started construction in violation of the approved building plan. This is illegal,” a notice issued by the assistant town planner of RMC states.
The notice asked Sadiya to respond within seven days. In case she fails to do so, the RMC warned that it would demolish the under-construction bungalow under the Gujarat Provincial Municipal Corporation (GPMC) Act.
“…serving this notice under Section 260(1) of the GPMC Act, directing you to give within seven days or earlier than that a written reply you or your unauthorised person, detailing how to mend or demolish that construction…if no reply is received within seven days, RMC will demolish the unauthorised construction,” said the notice.
According to the notice, the RMC would charge her for the expenses of the demolition. “We had received complaints about construction in addition to the approved building plan and were verifying facts of that complaint. After finding substance in the complaint, we have issued a demolition notice to Sagathiya’s wife who owns the plot of land and who had got a building plan approved for the under-construction bungalow,” a senior RMC officer told The Indian Express on Saturday on the condition of anonymity.
Incidentally, Sagathiya was arrested on May 30, four days after a massive fire broke out at TRP Game Zone, an amusement park having indoor and outdoor gaming facilities, in Rajkot on May 25. The blaze had claimed 27 lives. Sagathiya was arrested for alleged “illegal acts of omission” with police saying that he was aware that a tin shed housing indoor gaming facilities at TRP Game Zone did not have required approvals from the town planning department of the RMC but Sagathiya, who was heading the department, didn’t act against it. Later on, Sagathiya was booked for allegedly forging documents related to TRP Game Zone. He was also booked by the Gujarat Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) for allegedly owning assets disproportionate to his known sources of income. He is presently in judicial custody. Along with him, seven other RMC officers, including Rajkot’s chief fire officer Ilesh Kher and deputy chief fire officer Bhikha Theba were also arrested in the game zone fire case and are presently in jail. The other RMC staff members who were arrested and are in jail were from the town planning and fire and emergency services department of the RMC.
The under-construction of bungalow of MD Sagathiya, in Rajkot. (Express Photo) 
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