The Kerala State Human Rights Commission (KSHRC) will probe into a complaint, which alleged loss to the tune of lakhs of rupees after the acquisition of land and purchase of equipment for a proposed swimming pool on the Kozhikode South beach.
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A release said on Saturday that the order was issued by Commission judicial member K. Baijunath. The inquiry wing led by Director General of Police Tomin J. Thachankary has been asked to submit a report in two months. The Kozhikode District Collector had submitted a report on the issue to the Commission.
According to the report, the Sports Council had been given 1.5 acres on lease to construct the pool. Equipment was purchased, but the work could not be completed. Though a notice was issued to the council to levy ₹6.93 crore as lease dues for the period between 1999 and 2019, it was stayed by the Kerala High Court. Meanwhile, a portion of the land was taken over by the Department of Ports for the beautification of the beach. The council, however, remitted the lease dues till 2018 March 30. The Collector said he had written to the Additional Chief Secretary, Revenue, asking if government permission was required to cancel the lease.
Meanwhile, an official from the Department of Ports informed the Commission that the swimming pool construction was stopped after an environmental organisation approached the High Court alleging violation of Coastal Regulatory Zone rules. The official also said that the land should be returned to the department as the lease period had expired.
The complainant, A.C. Francis, submitted that sports lovers and swimming enthusiasts had lost a project that would have benefited them. This was due to the conflict between government departments. He also sought to recover the loss from officials. Mr. Baijunath said there was merit in the complaint and ordered an inquiry.