Patna(Magnificent Bihar): Some time judicial pronouncements and directives and subsequent follow-up action by the administration in haste to implement the court directive create piquant situations and keep the people on tenterhooks to remain on their fate’s mercy. One such example had created a worse situation for the residents including pregnant women, ailing patients among others of the Keshavkunj-Aparajita apartment building located behind the LIC divisional office at the Fraser Road adjacent to Sinha Library under local Kotwali police station here following the sealing of apartments exit point on Saturday evening by the Patna administration on the directive of the Patna High Court.
Over 150 residents, living in the apartment, having a number of flats, were entrapped and seen crying for help but nobody was there to listen to there grievances. However, the district administration felt something and good sense prevailed and seal of the apartment was removed at about 11.30 am today and residents took a sigh of relief.
The District magistrate of Patna, on peoples outcry finally got the seal broken. The DM Sanjay Kumar told Magnificent Bihar on phone that it would not be proper to comment over the matter as it pertains to court directive. But when insisted about the plight of the residents of the apartment, entrapped in the sealed apartment, he , however, said that now ”nobody is entrapped, meaning thereby that seal of the apartment has been removed.”
The Patna district administration with a posse of armed police forces on Saturday evening reached the apartment building and asked the residents to leave the apartment in no time as they had to implement the court order to seal the apartment building. Some of the residents managed to leave the apartments but majority of them remained in their apartment because of the haste by the administration to implement the court directive. Many of them were aghast over such a hasty action of the administration without any prior notice. Public outcry was being witnessed at the spot but administration was keeping silent. The Patna High court was closed for Durga Puja and administration was seen hesitant to break open the seal of apartment building for rescuing other residents. Even after the visit of city SP Shivdeep Lande at about 10.30 pm on Saturday night following outcry of the people and residents, nothing tangible came out and interestingly the city SP left the venue surreptitiously.
The residents living the apartment were miserable. One pregnant woman, Neetu who was reportedly due for delivery, was facing pain but the apartment was sealed and she could not come out to visit the doctor. Many of the residents are suffering from heart ailment and the strange situation had aggravated the disease. Children were seen crying for essentials but nobody was ready from the administration side to listen to their agonies.
Over ten families were living in the apartment and many of their kith and kin were left outside.
The owner of the land of the apartment Prof Vibha Singh (70), who is herself sufferring from heart disease, was entrapped in the sealed apartment building. A retired bank employee Udayan Mukherjee and a lecturer A K Jha , who also along with their family members were entrapped in the sealed apartment, alleged that no prior notice was given to them about the court directive. Suddenly, Patna district administration reached at about 5 pm and asked them to vacate their apartment within ten minutes. No proper and adequate opportunity was given to the residents to come out from the apartment and they were entrapped in the sealed apartment.
Retired professor Bibha Singh said that there was dispute over the land with her neighbour one P K singh. Bibha happens to be the wife of the builder Kameshwar Prasad Singh, the owner of the Asiana Consturuction but had no information about the court directive.
However, the district administration was sticking to their guns and showing helplessness over the issue as the apartment building had been sealed on court directive. Proper notice had been served to the residents in the past, the Patna district administration sources said. Kotwali police station house officer inchage Aman Kumar told Magnificent Bihar that there was dispute over land of the apartment and court had directed the administration and police to seal the apartment building to stop further construction work – what construction work, the police officer failed to reply and justified the action of police and administration.
