Admn allows dismantling of heritage building under ‘political influence’

Jammu, August 1

The state administration has allowed dismantling of a heritage building, which shares a wall with Raj Bhawan here, to pave way for the construction of residential flats on the site.

The flats will be constructed in the vicinity of Hari Niwas Palace and Hotel, which is being looked after by Ajatshatru Singh, the younger son of veteran Congress leader Karan Singh and the grandson of late Maharaja Hari Singh, the erstwhile ruler of Jammu and Kashmir.

Ajatshatru Singh had joined the BJP in November last year. The land belongs to the Hari-Tara Charitable Trust. Tara Devi was Karan Singh’s mother.

Sources said the authorities allowed the dismantling of the huge structure, spreads over several kanals of land, without taking into account its heritage importance. “The heritage building, which was earlier used as a stable, where the horses of soldiers of erstwhile Dogra rulers were kept, is still in good condition, but it is being dismantled for reasons best known to the proprietors. A portion of the building was also used as servant quarters. The main gate of Raj Bhawan and the gate of this heritage building are located at a distance of just 60-70 metres. Besides, both the buildings share a wall.”

Sources questioned the wisdom of the civic body for granting permission to dismantle the heritage building.

“Fingers are being raised at the Housing and Urban Development Department, headed by Deputy Chief Minister Nirmal Singh. It has been learnt that the civic body granted permission to dismantle the heritage building following political pressure as the proprietors belong to the ruling party,” the sources said.

Sources said the proprietors had hired a contractor from outside the state for execution of the project. “A team of about 12-15 labourers, expert in dismantling buildings, has been on job for the past 25 days and they would take two to three months to completely dismantle the heritage structure,” they said.

A labourer on the site said, “We have come from New Delhi. Our contractor sent us to complete the job (dismantling the building) within two months. After we finish our job, a team having expertise in construction work would replace us. We don’t know what kind of structure will be constructed there.”

Mohammad Saleem Beig, Chairman, Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage (INTACH), J&K Chapter, said the state government could not dismantle or demolish any heritage building if it had been “listed and notified”. “Besides, there are laws where the municipal bodies also cannot dismantle any building within their limits having heritage importance,” he said.

Soujanya Kumar Sharma, Commissioner, Jammu Municipal Corporation (JMC), said they had granted permission for the construction of residential flats. “They (developer) sought permission from us and we granted it. Residential flats will be constructed there.”Ajatshatru Singh was unavailable for comment. — TNS