Hyderabad: Pradeep Constructions has approached the Telangana High Court challenging a show-cause notice issued by the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) proposing cancellation of the building permission granted for its luxury residential project on Raj Bhavan Road, Somajiguda, near Hussain Sagar.
The petition challenges the notice issued on July 7 and seeks directions restraining the GHMC from taking any coercive action pending adjudication of the matter.
Notice issued under Section 450 of GHMC Act, 1955
The civic body issued the notice under Section 450 of the GHMC Act, 1955, alleging that the developer had obtained building permission through material misrepresentation and suppression of facts. The GHMC contended that the project had come up within the Full Tank Level (FTL) limits of Hussain Sagar and on land whose ownership is under serious dispute.
However, Pradeep Constructions argued before the High Court that the Full Tank Level (FTL) of Hussain Sagar has not been conclusively determined and that the notices were issued without first establishing the precise FTL boundaries.
HYDRAA, GHMC, Collectorate officials conduct joint inspection
The row surfaced after a joint inspection by officials of the Hyderabad Disaster Response and Asset Protection Agency (HYDRAA), GHMC and the Hyderabad Collectorate, following a complaint from the Irrigation Department that it had not granted permission for any construction within the Hussain Sagar FTL limits.
Pending the outcome of the proceedings, the GHMC has kept the builder’s application for an Occupancy Certificate (OC) in abeyance. No OC has been issued for the project so far. Under existing rules, buildings without an Occupancy Certificate cannot be legally occupied, and utility connections such as electricity and water are generally not granted.
The project, owned by real estate developer Pradeep Reddy Badvelu through Pradeep Constructions, comprises two residential towers with two cellar levels, stilt parking, 17 upper floors and a clubhouse. Marketed as a luxury development offering three- and four-bedroom apartments on nearly two acres near Hussain Sagar, the project was nearing completion when the dispute arose.
The GHMC’s action has also left homebuyers in uncertainty, as the proposed cancellation of the building permission could delay possession and cloud the legal status of flats booked in the project.
The High Court is expected to hear the petition in due course.
