RTI reveals illegal conversion of residential premises
7 Feb, 2013An application was filed with the Madurai Municipal Corporation under the Right to Information (RTI) Act seeking to know whether the ongoing conversion of residential properties allotted by Tamil Nadu Housing Board (TNHB) in Anna Nagar into commercial buildings was legal.
In its reply, the Madurai Municipal Corporation stated that most of the buildings in question were allotted for residential purpose only as denoted by their building plan approval, electricity connection and drinking water connections. The applicant then sent a written representation to the corporation and sought for proper action to be taken by the corporation. Though the local body accepted that there were many unauthorized constructions in the area, no action was taken to stop it.
Now, S.M. Kumar alias S. Muthukumar, a lawyer who had obtained the information through the RTI application has filed a public interest litigation (PIL) in the Madurai bench of Madras High Court claiming that the illegal conversion of residential properties into commercial ones are leading to traffic congestion and pollution apart from the problem of parking space and has requested the court to issue directions to the municipal corporation for fast action.