After Prajapati, other bigwigs on LDA’s radar

The development authority has a long list of illegal buildings owned by politically influential people

After demolishing former Samajwadi Party MLA Gayatri Prajapati’s illegal commercial complex, the Lucknow Development Authority (LDA) is ready to take action against other such structures belonging to influential people.

The development authority has a long list of illegal buildings owned by politically influential individuals.

“We have identified illegal commercial structures that have come up on residential plots. All of them will be demolished,” said Jai Shanker Dubey, secretary, LDA.

Taking the top spot in the list is Samajwadi Party MLC Bukkal Nawab’s multi-storey housing complex in Old city.

This apartment complex is built on a residential plot. Nawab’s son, Faisal, is a co-owner of the property, which was approved only as a singlestorey residential house.

Due to political patronage by the previous Samajwadi Party government, the development authority had allegedly turned a blind eye to Nawab’s illegal construction. However, his fortunes nosedived after a change of government in the state.

Now, the LDA has issued the order to demolish the complex, but an appeal against it is pending with the divisional commissioner Anil Garg - also the LDA chairman.

Trader leader Gopal Agarwal’s hotel at Nirala Nagar is also under scanner. So was, City Life Mall at Patrakarpuram, Gomti Nagar (owned by MB Singh), which has already been sealed.

All these commercial complexes were erected on residential plots - a blatant violation of building norms.

The LDA has also demolished structures belonging to former SP minister Sharda Pratap Shukla at Bangla Bazar, and freed the land he had been occupying illegitimately.

Earlier, to rid the city of illegal structures and check commercial activity from residential plots, the development authority had rolled back its decision (taken during Samajwadi Party regime) to allow change in land use from residential to commercial for 71 influential people.

Ever since the Yogi government came to power, LDA has been acting against illegal structures.

In the past, the development authority had often drawn flak for ignoring such construction.

An LDA official on condition of anonymity said, “Around 1,700 structures have to be demolished. However, it will not be easy.”

To recall, LDA acted against Prajapati’s illegal complex at Saleh Nagar, Bangla Bazar only after it got a rap from the Lucknow bench of the Allahabad high court.