No proof showing Michael Madhusudan Dutt’s home: Calcutta High Court

Kolkata: The Calcutta High Court has set aside the Kolkata Municipal Corporation’s (KMC) decision to declare a residential building at 20B, Karl Marx Sarani as a heritage property, holding that the move was arbitrary, illegal and unsupported by reliable evidence.

Justice Rai Chattopadhyay, delivering a common judgment on two petitions, found that the civic body failed to justify its decision with authenticated material and acted contrary to statutory requirements.

The dispute centred on the KMC’s claim that the house was once the residence of poet Michael Madhusudan Dutta. However, the West Bengal Heritage Commission, upon review, found no documentary proof to support this and declined to endorse the heritage status.

Despite this, the KMC reiterated its decision, relying on non-fiction books and even Wikipedia entries. The court held that such sources could not be treated as credible evidence for conferring heritage status, particularly in the absence of supporting records.

The court also noted that the KMC neither properly assessed the available material nor followed the statutory route of challenging the Commission’s view before the state government. Instead, it merely reaffirmed earlier recommendations without independent application of mind.

Observing that heritage classification imposes serious restrictions on property rights, including limits on use and transfer, the court said such decisions must be based on verified and cogent material.

Holding the action to be an unreasonable exercise of power, the court allowed the petitions and directed the Corporation to immediately remove the property from the graded list of heritage buildings.