NEW DELHI: The
East Delhi Municipal Corporation (EDMC) has completed its investigation into the case of BJP state president
Manoj Tiwari breaking the
seal of a
house in
Gokulpur on Sunday. A
complaint was filed with police based on the
probe report.
A senior official, who was involved in the preliminary investigation, said that the house was recently sealed for running an illegal dairy by the veterinary department of EDMC. “It is not a case of sealing carried out by the SC-appointed monitoring committee. Nevertheless,
breaking a seal is an unlawful act. The department lodged a complaint at the Gokulpur police station attaching all the press reports and video,” he added.
A copy of the report has also been submitted to the monitoring committee too, the official said. “In many cases properties are rented out and we seal it for such violations. If the owner of the building breaks the seal then he is held accountable,” he said. “From our point of view both the owner as well as the person breaking the seal should be held responsible. It is also the duty of the house owner to protect the seal,” he added.
In videos that went viral on Sunday, Tiwari was seen breaking the seal lock of a house, saying he was protesting against municipal officials’ ‘pick-and-choose’ policy of acting against properties allegedly flouting building rules. “Only one house in the lane, which I visited on Sunday, was sealed by the authorities. Why were others spared?” Tiwari said. “I will not stop here. I will go to every locality where illegal sealing is being done. I have taken a pledge; I will not tolerate any ‘pick and choose’ action. This (sealing) is facilitating corruption. Municipal officials are indulging in corruption in the name of sealing by the monitoring committee,” Tiwari told mediapersons.
