"Last Opportunity to Deposit Interim Compensation Or Attached Assets Will Be Sold"; Supreme Court Warns Developers In Maradu Flats Demolition Case [Read Order]

A Bench of Justices RF Nariman, Krishna Murari and Aniruddha Bose heard the matter and warned the developers that this would be the last opportunity to deposit the money or else the Justice Balakrishnan Nair Committee would be empowered to sell the assets of the developers that had been attached.

The Apex Court, on being informed by Senior Advocate Gopal Sankaranarayanan that the Committee sought for an amicus as personal attacks had been made against it on affidavit by the developers, appointed Advocate Gaurav Aggarwal to assist the Court and meet the Committee.

The mandate of the Committee has also been extended till further orders.

In today's hearing, Justice Nariman issued a stern warning to the developers to place another proposal stipulating concrete methods of paying the compensation, or otherwise to face the course that would be followed by law.

"We have read the latest report and it is clear that a balance somehow has to be paid by all of you. All of the assets at this moment stand attached. Keeping Jain apart, so far as the other three builders are concerned, at least two of gave some proposal to the Committee which was rejected."

The Court, after making this observation, also informed the Counsels present that the matter would now be taken up on one date in December and all the Counsels would be allowed to make their submissions, including the Contempt Petitioner.

In the previous hearing, the Supreme Court had directed State of Kerala to file an Affidavit within three weeks, outlining the steps they had taken in pursuance of the 23^rd September, 2019 order of the Supreme Court.

In the 23.09.2019 Order, a Supreme Court Bench comprising of Justices Arun Mishra and S. Ravindra Bhat had noted that State of Kerala had no concrete plan carved out to undertake the demolition.

Further, permission had not been obtained from KSCZMA to raise construction and "it is due to such violation and tortuous action, the entire environment is being degraded and coastal zones are being illegally occupied".

The Court further noted that rather than preventing the violations, the authorities were mobilizing public opinion and time had come "to hold them responsible for their active connivance in such activities of degrading the environment and violation of the coastal zone regulations etc".

Accordingly, the State of Kerala was directed to submit a concrete plan to prevent such violations in future and also to take action against the existing violators.

"It is also to be put on record as to what course of action they propose against all such existing violators and how many such constructions exist at present in the State of Kerala which are in violation of the notification issued by the Coastal Regulation Zone Authority".

On 27.09.2019, the Supreme Court then directed the State Government to pay, out of its own funds, a sum of Rs. 25 lakhs to each of the flat owners who were being evicted, and that the amount would not be recoverable from the Builder/Promoter/ the persons/officials responsible for raising the construction.

A Committee was constituted and headed by Justice (Retd.) K. Balakrishnan Nair in order to look after the payment of the amount to each of the flat owners, as well as to work out the actual amount paid.