Orissa high court issues notice on amnesty scheme

CUTTACK: The Orissa high court on Thursday issued notices to the state government, housing and urban development department and different civic bodies in the state asking them to file reply to a petition alleging illegality of the amnesty scheme launched by state government on June 20 to regularise unauthorised residential as well as non-residential constructions in areas under civic bodies.

The court has directed the parties to file their replies within four weeks. The court’s direction came in response to a petition filed by an RTI campaigner Subash Mohapatra. He has challenged the amnesty scheme announced by the state government on June 20 is illegal and arbitrary.

The petitioner has challenged the scheme on the ground that it is not in accordance with law. Mohapatra has alleged in his plea that in 2015 he filed a PIL in the high court on basis of the CAG report which cited that state government officials were not taking appropriate and necessary measures to remove encroachments and illegal constructions of high rise buildings. While the matter is still sub-judice, the state government has brought this amnesty scheme and hence it is illegal, said petitioner’s counsel Sidhartha Prasad Das.

He has further alleged that the state government published the gazette notification regarding the amnesty scheme without inviting any suggestion or objection, which is the violation of section 125 of the Orissa Development Authorities Act 1982.

As per the state government announced the illegal constructions in urban and semi-urban areas can be regularised by imposing a certain amount of compounding fee.

The state government has notified the scheme for regularisation of unauthorised construction on June 20. Illegal constructions can be regularised by levying additional compounding fee against the existing charges. Unauthorised constructions that are structurally safe and do not affect public interest or safety or interfere with any public activities and do not contradict provisions of any other Act, rules and regulations can be regularized under the scheme.