HC wants replies from TCP on zone-swap fee waivers

Panaji: The high court has called for replies from the TCP department and the director of vigilance in a PIL seeking to recover fees illegally waived under Section 17(2) of the TCP Act. This waiver was for deleting roads proposed in the regional plan, thereby reclassifying them as settlement areas. The PIL filed by Swapnesh Sherlekar alleged a loss to the exchequer in cases considered for correction of zones. under Section 17(2), where several proposed roads were deleted without the collection of fees and without any statutory basis for such exemption.Among these were properties belonging to TCP minister Vishwajit Rane, who benefited from this unauthorised exemption of fees, the petition stated. In one such case at Carapur in Bicholim, published in the official gazette dated Nov 21, 2024, includes the deletion of a proposed road resulting in 4,214sqm being reclassified as a settlement zone. As per the revised notification, this change should have attracted fees of Rs 1,000 per sqm, amounting to Rs 44.1 lakh, which was improperly waived, Sherlekar submitted in the PIL. The decision for correction of the zone was taken post-March 28, 2024, making the revised rates applicable.

In another case published in the official gazette dated March 7, 2024, in the same village, also belonging to Rane, the deletion of a proposed road resulted in 17,802 sqm being reclassified as a settlement zone, the petition stated. “This should have attracted fees of Rs 150 per sqm (as per rates applicable before March 28, 2024, for areas between 10,000 sqmto 20,000 sqm) amounting to Rs 26.7 lakh, which was similarly waived,” Sherlekar submitted through his advocate, Rohit Bras De Sa. The total revenue loss in just these two cases amounts to approximately Rs 69.8 lakh, he stated, adding that there are numerous similar cases of deletion of proposed roads between March 2023 and March 2024, as well as after March 2024, which require scrutiny for similar unauthorised exemptions.“The fee schedule as notified in the official gazette specifically applies to ‘fee for correction of inconsistent/incoherent zoning provisions which amount to change of zone of land to settlement zone or the sub-zone settlement (commercial), per square metre of land,’ and there is no notified order on record indicating that removal of proposed roads under Section 17(2) is exempted from payment of fees,” Sherlekar further submitted.“We have heard the counsel Rohit Bras De Sa in support of the petition, and noted the specific pleadings in the petition, which revolve around the properties belonging to Vishwajit Rane, and a

specific allegation is levelled that he benefited from this unauthorised exemption of fees,” stated the division bench.comprising Justices Bharati Dangre and Nivedita Mehta.