NEARLY A MONTH TO GO FOR DEMOLITION Court directs cops to file FIR in Campa Cola case

Mumbai: A month and a half before the expiry of the deadline to demolish illegal floors in the upscale Campa Cola society in Worli, the Bhoiwada magistrate's court on Monday directed the police to register a first information report (FIR) against developers and civic officials. The court gave the directive following a complaint lodged by Chandru Khemani, who owns an eighth-floor flat in one of the buildings that is slated for demolition.      "Going by the Criminal Procedure Code, the magistrate had sought reports from the Worli police on two occasions, but they failed to submit one. The court then ordered that an FIR be registered," said advocate Pradeep Havnur, who along with advocate Jamshed Mistry, is representing Khemani who stays in Orchid building.      The complaint names the lessee of the land, M/s Pure Drinks Pvt. Ltd, builders PSB Constructions, B K Gupta, B Y Builders, M/s Krishna Developers, the then BMC commissioners and other civic officers who failed to take action and officers of sub-registrar of assurances. The complaint has sought that the accused be prosecuted on the charges of cheating, forgery and offences under the Maharashtra Ownership of Flats Act. The court has slated the matter for next hearing on Tuesday.      Seven high-rises were constructed in the Campa Cola compound from 1981 to 1989. The BMC initiated action as the builders had illegally built additional floors. While the permissible Floor Space Index (FSI) granted to the builders was 1.86 lakh sq ft, the developers had constructed up to an FSI of 2.11 lakh without any sanction  from the civic body, consuming an excess FSI of 24,779.8 sq ft. In February this year, the Supreme Court said all the floors above the fifth floor in each building will have to be demolished and also rules that the residents of those illegal flats could not get their floors regularized. After the residents failed to get any relief from courts, the BMC is supposed to raze 35 illegal floors in seven buildings in the Campa Cola compound from October 2. "All the accused, in connivance with each other, induced flatbuyers to purchase flats in their illegal floors, causing a wrongful loss to the complainant and other flat purchasers," Khemani claimed in his complaint. "During the period when the illegal constructions were carried out, officers did not initiate any action against them and thus aided and abetted with the accused for the illegal criminal activities by dereliction of duties," added the complainant.      The application said the accused had earned crores of rupees by selling the illegal flats and a proper investigation was required to unearth the conspiracy.