Officials fake report to build bridge in Kolhapur, face Bombay HC ire

MUMBAI: The Bombay high court has slammed district authorities in Kolhapur for a “brazen act of fabrication” intended to show that an archaeological site was over 100 metres away from a bridge under construction.
Declaring their May 2018 survey report and map to be illegal, the court pointed out that the ancient site of Brahmapuri was shown on a private plot at a safe distance only to enable completion of the new Shivaji Bridge on the Panchganga river in Kolhapur.
Brahmapuriis an ancient site under the provisions of the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains Act. As per Kolhapur city’s existing Development Plan, it lies close to the over 140-year-old Shivaji Bridge. However, on a direction from the Kolhapur collector, a report and map were prepared by the District Superintendent of Land Records showing the bridge further away on privately owned land.
HC: Unbelievably, Brahmapuri report and map made in a day
Mumbai: The Bombay high court has found that on the Kolhapur district collector’s direction a report and map were prepared in May 2018 to show an archaeological site to be over 100 metres away from its location so that the under-construction new Shivaji bridge on the Panchganga fell outside the no-construction zone.
The high court has directed a fresh survey within four weeks after a notice is issued to the landowners.
“Merely because the construction of the new bridge is in public interest, it gives no right to the government or the statutory authorities to declare the private land of a citizen as an ancient monument site, and thereby jeopardise the right of such private land holder,’’ said a bench of Justice S J Kathawalla and Justice Milind Jadhav on January 12.
The judgment said, “We do not have the slightest hesitation to declare the impugned report dated 28.05.2018 and Survey Map—of same date—prepared by the district superintendent of land records, Kolhapur, as completely illegal.” It said the action of the collector, DSLR and City Survey Officer, in conjunction with officials of the Archaeological Department, “is not only shocking but deserves to be strictly reprimanded”. The entire exercise “at the behest of Kolhapur collector…smacks of mala fides and is a completely colourable exercise of power,” said the HC.
Kolhapur resident B D Jadhav had in 2019 petitioned the HC to challenge the legality of the report and map. He argued that the ‘Brahmapuri of Kolhapur’ is on CTS 2355, not 2357, as mentioned in the 2018 map. He is owner of part of CTS 2357.
The HC observed that the site was indeed in CTS 2355 in the Development Plan and in close proximity to the old Shivaji Bridge. In 2012 the road transport ministry sanctioned a new bridge at the spot and it needed a nod from the Archaeology Department. In 2014 a proposal was sent to the National Monument Authority, but permission was refused as the bridge was coming up within 40 metres of the site. Construction then stopped. On May 28, 2018, the Kolhapur collector sought a survey to know the monument’s location. A report along with a map were unbelievably prepared the same day, said the HC. In May 2019, the NOC was granted and the bridge completed.
The HC said, “to overcome the…statutory provision under which no construction could have taken place within…100 metres from a protected area or protected monument, the impugned Survey Report and Survey Map is prepared… so that the NOC from the Archaeological Department could be obtained”. “To serve the interest of the National Highway Authority and to complete…construction of the new bridge, the Survey Report and Survey Map were prepared without giving notice to land owners,” the court said.
In the year 1945, the then Princely State of Kolhapur Government, at the suggestion of Professor D.R. Gadgil, Director of Gokhale Institute of Politics and Economics, invited the Research Institute, Pune, to undertake the work of excavation at a site on scientific lines. The excavation work lasted for four months and with the sanction of the then Government of Bombay, a report titled "Excavations at Brahmapuri (Kolhapur) 1945-46" was published.
The report set the location of the ancient site of Brahmapuri as North latitude 16041' and East longitude 74071'.
The old Shivaji Bridge is stone masonry with five arches constructed in 1878. Section 20 A of the Ancient Monuments Act prohibits public work within 100 metres from protected sites, said the HC.
The HC said, “The deafening silence of the Respondents in answering this aspect of the matter and the specific grounds raised in the present petition, is clearly evident.’’ The HC judgment said, “In fact, the Development Plan of Kolhapur City prepared by the Corporation and sanctioned by the Government, clearly bears out the location of the said site on CTS No. 2355 and not on CTS No.2357’’ adding “There can be no better evidence than the sanctioned Development Plan.’’
The HC also said “it is impossible to believe and comprehend’’ how in one day the survey was completed with no notice to the petitioner. “Without adhering to the procedure prescribed by law, shockingly on the same date—May 28, 2018--the City Survey Officer has submitted a premeditated report and a map,’’ the HC held.
Jadhav had also challenged two notices one received from the Archeological Survey of India last July for allegedly contravening of the Ancient Monuments Act by putting a fencing and the other issued in September 2021 by Kolhapur municipal corporation alleging that he carried out unauthorized construction on plot number 2355 which he said he is not in possession of.
His petition made the Union Ministry of Culture, The National Monument Authority, the Archaeological Survey of India, Mumbai Circle, apart from National Highway Authority, Maharashtra government, Kolhapur district collector, others s party respondents.
The HC quashed both notices holding that the July 2021 notice was issued to “protect or camouflage the ostensible illegality’’ and the September notice of the KMC was also incorrectly issued.