Ex-VVCMC chief approved building plans measuring 55 mn sqft in lieu of bribes: ED

Rampant illegal, unauthorised construction within VVCMC limits was one of the reasons why water accumulated on the railway tracks and affected local train services on Tuesday, as per Western Railway

MUMBAI: Former Vasai Virar City Municipal Corporation (VVCMC) commissioner Anil Pawar – arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in connection with its money laundering probe into the construction of 41 illegal, now-demolished buildings in Vasai East – had approved building plans measuring 55 million square feet during his tenure in lieu of bribes levied at fixed rates, agency sources familiar with the probe told Hindustan Times. Pawar allegedly indulged in such activities in connivance with the former VVCMC deputy director of town planning, YS Reddy, the sources said.

The 41 illegal buildings were demolished in February following court orders.

Rampant illegal, unauthorised construction within VVCMC limits was one of the reasons why water accumulated on the railway tracks and affected local train services on Tuesday, as per Western Railway.

According to the ED, Pawar, an Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer, had formed a cartel that set in motion large-scale illegal construction in Vasai-Virar, and he was assisted in this by Reddy.

Both Pawar Reddy were arrested by the ED last week, along with former corporator Sitaram Gupta and co-accused Arun Gupta. On Wednesday, all four accused were remanded in judicial custody till September 3 by a city-based special court. The accused have denied the ED’s charges.

The investigation so far has revealed that Pawar worked in connivance with Reddy to issue commencement certificates for construction projects with a total built-up area of 55,043,263.59 square feet in urban and green zone areas.

“Bribe in the form of commission was charged at fixed rates for all the approvals,” an officer aware of the matter told HT.

Pawar and Reddy indulged in corrupt practices while discharging their official duties at the VVCMC, said agency sources.

“They created a well-oiled mechanism for collection of bribes pertaining to various approvals and permissions, such as issuance of commencement/ occupancy certificates and revised development permissions for different layouts and building plans,” the officer said.

When Pawar headed the VVCMC from 2022 till he was transferred on July 17 and relinquished charge on July 24, he had all civic departments under his supervision, including the office of the Chief Controller of Unauthorised Constructions, which is responsible for prevention and demolition of unauthorised structures, the sources said. The bribery or commission rate levied during Pawar’s tenure was much higher than the rates sought by the VVCMC town planning department, the sources added.

The ED has also found that Sitaram Gupta and Arun Gupta had played key roles in selling off the 60-acre plot on which the 41 illegal buildings stood. Thirty acres of the plot was privately owned while another 30 acres was reserved for a sewage treatment plant and dumping ground. The plot was sold off using forged agreements and power of attorney documents while the buildings were constructed between 2013 and 2021, in close connivance with certain civic officials then, said agency sources.

The duo allegedly sold the plot to various builders and later collaborated with them to construct the buildings – either directly or through dummy builders/ firms that had no creditworthiness or experience in the realty sector, the sources added.

According to the ED’s estimates, the total built-up area of the 41 illegal buildings was around 367,000 square feet and the price of apartments in the buildings in 2006-07 ranged ₹1,000-1,200 per square feet. But by 2022-23, the prices had increased to ₹3,000-4,000 per square feet.