There is no blanket ban in building bylaws for putting up houses on private plots measuring less than 50 sq. m in Bengaluru: Karnataka High Court

The bar imposed in the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike’s building bylaws for sanctioning residential detached house on a private plot measuring less than 50 sq. m is “not a blanket prohibition” for construction, the High Court of Karnataka has said.

The bar imposed in the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike’s building bylaws for sanctioning residential detached houses on private plots measuring less than 50 sq. m is “not a blanket prohibition” for construction, the High Court of Karnataka has said.

The sanction for residential building on private plots measuring less than 50 sq. m will also have to be considered and granted following due principles of law equitably in the interest of citizens when the bylaws allow the construction of houses under the government’s housing schemes for the economical weaker sections (EWS), low-income groups (LIG), slum clearance and improvement projects, and reconstruction in densely populated areas, the court said.

Justice Suraj Govindaraj passed the order while disposing of the petitions filed by Nagaraj and several others who have put up residential buildings on their plots measuring less than 50 sq. m either without obtaining permission or after the rejection of their application for sanction of plan by the BBMP. These were plots created due to sub-division of family properties, which were either vested with one of the family members or such family member having sold it to a third party.

On perusal of clause 7.2 of the BBMP’s building bylaw, 2003, at first glance, it would appear that no plan can be sanctioned and no construction can be put up on plots measuring less than 50 sq. m, the court said. However, the court noted that an exception is carved out in the very same bylaw for construction on such plots for housing schemes for EWS, LIG, and slum clearance schemes, reconstruction in densely populated areas, plot sub-divided due to family partitions, etc.

“...unless there is some mala fide or unless the use of such a plot is likely to cause serious harm and injury to the town planning and/or services being provided by any governmental agency, the authorities in question ought to consider a request made by such plot owners favourably and in a beneficial manner for such person,” the court said.

The court said the case of the petitioners would have to be considered favourably considering the value of land in a city like Bengaluru as even to purchase a plot less than 50 sq. m is a dream for many of the persons and they would have bought such a property by investing their hard-earned money through their life savings or even borrowing loan from banks and private lenders.

The court said that all the petitioners would have to apply for a grant of sanction to the BBMP, which would accord permission as per the proposed guidelines. In cases where constructions were already put up without the sanctioned plan, the building owners will have to alter it to fit into the prescribed setback, height, area, etc. to get the certificate. If they failed to alter the buildings in conformity with the guidelines, then the BBMP will have to take action as per the law, the court said. The petitioners, who have not put up construction, can go ahead after getting plan sanctioned in terms of the proposed guideline.