Two booked for building temple without approval in G Noida society

The complainant Prem Prakash Mishra, assistant manager, work circle 6, Greater Noida authority, said some people were constructing a temple on the premises of Mitra Sahkari Samiti Society.

Two residents, one of them the residents’ welfare association (RWA) president of the housing society, have been booked for allegedly building a temple without required clearance from the Greater Noida authority in Sector P 7. The authority filed a complaint against residents Tara Chand and Dharmendra Nagar, RWA president, of Mitra Enclave, a plotted residential area, on Sunday.

Two residents, one of them the residents’ welfare association (RWA) president of the housing society, have been booked for allegedly building a temple without required clearance from the Greater Noida authority in Sector P 7. (Pratik Chorge/HT Photo (Representative image))

The complainant Prem Prakash Mishra, assistant manager, work circle 6, Greater Noida authority, said some people were constructing a temple on the premises of Mitra Sahkari Samiti Society. “The land is allotted to Mitra Sahkari Samiti and residents were developing the temple without a clearance from the authority. They also had no map approval, which is against the building by-laws,” he said. Mishra named Chand and Nagar in the police complaint filed in Sector Beta 2 police station.

The society has around 217 houses and 60 of them are occupied. Local residents had collected around ₹12 lakh donations to develop the temple in a park near the main gate.

Budh Ram, a local resident, said that earlier society residents used to visit another society’s temple to offer prayers. “The residents then held a meeting and decided to have a temple in our society,” Ram said.

Chand said residents had no idea that a permission from the authority was required. “We believed that the society’s nod was enough, but we have stopped the work when the authority officials informed us. We have written to the authority and the administration for a map layout approval and the required clearance,” he said.

The foundation of the temple had been laid when the Greater Noida authority received a tip-off about the unauthorised development. A team accompanied by police reached there and stopped the work. Bricks, stones, sand and other construction material were found at the spot. “We will clear the area and comply with the authority’s guidelines,” Vinod Nagar, a resident, said.

Sujit Upadhyaya, SHO, Sector Beta II Police station, said police have registered a case against them under Sections 3 and 4 of Prevention of Damage to Public Property Act, 1984. “A team reached the spot and stopped the work on Sunday. We are investigating the matter,” he said. The RWA president was in Lucknow on Monday and his phone was not reachable for comment.