"It is because of the municipal corporation's inaction that builders are disposing off flats and premises in such illegal buildings (to unsuspecting buyers). If the buildings are occupied it creates complications for its demolition," said a division bench of Justice Abhay Oka and Justice Riyaz Chagla. The petitioners said there are over 50,000 illegal buildings in Bhiwandi.
The figures provided by the corporation mentioned that 239 illegal buildings have come up since January 1, 2016.
The court directed the commissioner of the Bhiwandi Nizampur City Municipal Corporation to set up a grievance redress mechanism for complaints about illegal buildings and fix a time schedule for acting on such complaints.
The deputy municipal commissioner (encroachments) will be in charge of the grievance redress cell and will be responsible for initiating action.