No legal basis to bar windows in buildings facing Nabanna: Cal HC

Kolkata: The Calcutta High Court has held that authorities cannot prevent residents from having windows or balconies in buildings facing the state secretariat Nabanna, observing that such a restriction has no backing in law.

Justice Gaurang Kanth set aside several conditions imposed by the Howrah Municipal Corporation (HMC) while granting building plan approval for a proposed G+4 residential building at premises No. 80/2, Kshetra Mohan Banerjee Lane in Shibpur, close to Nabanna.

The dispute arose after the civic body attached security-related conditions to the construction project citing the building’s proximity to Nabanna, which has been notified as a security zone. The property owner and the developer moved the High Court challenging the restrictions.

Among the directions issued by authorities was a requirement to erect a 10-foot “view cutter” wall and avoid providing windows, balconies or openings facing the Nabanna side.

The court held that such a restriction cannot be imposed by the state. The judge observed that the Howrah Municipal Corporation Act permits only height-related restrictions in notified security zones and does not authorise authorities to prohibit architectural features such as windows or balconies.

The court noted that building rules require adequate openings, light and ventilation in residential structures. A blanket ban on windows or balconies facing a particular direction, the court said, contradicts these norms and amounts to an arbitrary exercise of power.

Another condition required police verification of all present and future residents of the building.

The court held municipal authorities have no power to insist on police verification of occupants as a condition for granting building plan approval. Building regulations, it observed, govern the structure of a building and not the identity of residents. Mandatory and recurring verification would amount to an unjustified intrusion into personal liberty and privacy.

Holding the conditions arbitrary and without statutory authority, the court quashed the restrictions relating to the view-cutter wall, prohibition on windows and balconies, and police verification of residents.

However, the remaining conditions attached to the building plan approval were allowed to remain in force. The court directed authorities to process and finalise the building plan sanction in accordance with law without insisting on the quashed conditions. The application must be considered and disposed of within twelve weeks from service of the judgment.