KMC faces Calcutta HC's ire for delay in removing illegal structures from RBU campus

Kolkata, April 25 The Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) on Tuesday faced the ire of the Calcutta High Court for the delay in removing illegal constructions from within the heritage Jorasanko campus of the Rabindra Bharati University, which is housed at the ancestral residence of Rabindranath Tagore.

A division bench of acting Chief Justice T.S. Sivagnanam and Justice Hiranmay Bhattacharya directed the KMC authorities to complete the process of demolition of the illegal constructions and remove all the emblems of a particular political party from the campus within the next 45 days.

"When all parties have agreed that certain constructions within the campus are illegal, what is the point in keeping your eyes closed? If you wish you can start the demolition work within just six hours. So, start the work immediately and restore the heritage campus in its original form as early as possible," Justice Sivagnanam directed the KMC authorities.

The direction was passed after hearing a PIL that alleged that an unused room within the heritage building was converted into a party office.

In the PIL, it was alleged that the room which was converted into a party office had a historical value, since Rabindranath Tagore and another literary icon of the state, Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay, once held a meeting there.