Lokmat News Network
Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar:
Intense excavation work had been underway for the past few days next to the Smart City Office on Aamkhas Ground. The construction of an office for the Waqf Board was being carried out by the Public Works Department (PWD). On Wednesday afternoon, former MP Imtiaz Jaleel of the AIMIM party arrived at the site with his supporters and immediately stopped the work. He firmly warned that not even an inch of the ground would be allowed to be used for any office construction.
Excavation had been ongoing for the past eight days at the rear side of Aamkhas Ground, with (tinroof) metal sheets set up to block the view. Children who regularly visit the ground noticed the work being done using JCBs and poclain machines and inquired about it. They were told the land was being levelled or that the soil was being moved elsewhere. The construction was undertaken very discreetly. Upon learning that a massive office for the Waqf Board was being built by the PWD, former MP rushed to the site and halted the work.
“Not an Inch Will Be Given”
Former MP pointed out that the Waqf Board owns 93,000 acres of land across the state. He insisted that the Board should clear encroachments on its properties and construct offices there instead. He emphasised that Aamkhas Ground is a training space for many aspiring athletes who use it daily and warned that not a single inch of the ground would be given up for office construction.
No permission from CSMC
For any government office construction, prior permission from the municipal corporation’s Town Planning section is mandatory. According to Deputy Director (Town Planning) Manoj Garje, the PWD had not sought or received any permission to construct a Waqf office on Aamkhas Ground, nor had such a proposal been submitted to their office.