Lucknow fire: LDA court reserves order on demolition of building after final hearing

Lucknow, Jul 9 (PTI) The Lucknow Development Authority's (LDA) designated court on Thursday reserved its order on the demolition of an "illegal" commercial building in the city's Aliganj area, where a devastating fire claimed 15 lives last month, an official said. The LDA official told PTI that the court heard arguments for around an hour and a half from the building owner's counsel, before reserving its order, which is likely to be pronounced on Friday. According to the official, the arguments repeatedly centred on how the building in Sector D of Aliganj, which had received approval as a residential structure, was allegedly being used illegally as a multi-storey commercial establishment in violation of building norms. The official also said the Special Investigation Team (SIT) probing the incident has sought details of all officials posted in Zone D, where the building is located, including senior officers responsible for overseeing construction activities in the area. The information sought includes the officers' tenure, roles and responsibilities, and any alleged negligence during their postings. Demolition proceedings have been underway since June 23, a day after the fire broke out. The LDA has issued a fresh demolition notice, citing violations of building bylaws. The building in Aliganj housed an animation centre and a pet shop. The official said the arguments also highlighted that the building allegedly lacked adequate fire-safety measures and had only a single entry-and-exit route for the upper floor, where the animation centre employing several people was operating. Investigations have revealed that the building, sanctioned for residential use, was being used commercially and allegedly lacked mandatory fire-safety measures. On June 23, LDA Vice-Chairman Prathamesh Kumar told PTI that the authority had issued a demolition notice over violations of construction norms and initiated an inquiry against officials for alleged laxity. He had said the process of identifying the officers responsible for the lapses had begun. The first hearing in the demolition case was held on Tuesday, when the building owner's counsel sought a week to file a reply to the notice. The designated authority allowed him only a day. During Wednesday's hearing, the owner's counsel filed a reply and sought either the regularisation of the building under the new building bylaws or time for detailed arguments. The designated authority again declined to grant more than a day's adjournment, fixing Thursday for the final arguments. Police have arrested four persons in the criminal case -- building owner Virendra Prasad Shukla (62), Ram Krishna Upadhyay (43), animation centre operator Tushar Krishna Jaiswal (31) and Suresh Kumar Sahoo (41). Upadhyay, Jaiswal and Sahoo were remanded in judicial custody, while Shukla was not produced before the court. The Uttar Pradesh government has also suspended four officials from the electricity department, the fire department and the LDA in connection with the incident. PTI KIS RC