Anti-corruption activist Hemant Patil and about 40 supporters a protest march against the demolition of the Adarsh building on Thursday. The protest was part of a larger agitation to provide flats in the multi-storeyed building for widows of soldiers who died in the Kargil War.
Mr. Patil, who heads the NGO, Bharat Against Corruption, said, “We have come to Adarsh with just one demand: the State government should file an appeal in the Supreme Court or at least give us permission to appeal.” He said while he respected the Bombay High Court’s verdict, the demolition of the building would be a waste of money. “We have full faith in our judiciary, but the State government is not appealing against the order. We are holding the protest to make the Chief Minister and the State appeal against the order in the Supreme Court.”
Mr. Patil said, “We have nearly 50 widows who have come from Sangli, Satara and Nagpur, who have been restrained from reaching Adarsh.”
On April 29, the Bombay High Court in its verdict ordered the demolition of the building. The 31-storey building has been the subject of a scam which broke out in 2010. The Adarsh scam led to the resignation of the then Chief Minister Ashok Chavan. Mr. Patil said the agitation would continue till their demands were met. “We are giving the State government a week’s time to file an appeal in the Supreme Court. If the government doesn’t, we will hold another protest.”
The writer is an intern at The Hindu
