Diamantaire Nirav Modi’s seaside bungalow, Roopanya, at Kihim in Alibaug of Raigad district was demolished through controlled blasting at 11.15 a.m. on Friday.
At least 110 holes were drilled into the pillars using excavators, and around 30 kg gelatine explosives had been fixed in the holes over the past two days.
“Technical experts were working on a war footing to make the holes and fix the explosives. We finished by 6 a.m. on Friday after which we rested for a while. At 11.15 a.m., the structure was demolished,” Bharat Shitole, Additional Collector, Raigad district, said.
Mr. Shitole, who is known as ‘demolition man’ in his circle, had conducted around 40 such controlled blasting at Mira-Bhayander when he was posted there in 2001. Due to his experience, he was assigned to oversee the demolition by Raigad Collector Vijay Suryawanshi. The explosion was controlled by a wired button and was operated by officers who were standing 200 feet away from the structure. Spread across 33,000 square feet, the bungalow was built partly as a ground-plus-one structure. “It had close to 35 pillars of which 28 were in the front. The bungalow was constructed in different phases. It had a driveway, high-metal fencing, a huge security gate, a swimming pool, and resort-like slides on the first floor,” Mr. Shitole said.
A Bombay High Court order on a public interest litigation number 107 filed by non-profit Shamburaje Yuva Kranti in 2009 had ordered the demolition of illegal structures that came under the Coastal Regulatory Zone (CRZ).
“Around 159 structures that came under the CRZ were to be razed of which 111 got a stay order. Of the the remaining 47 structures, 24 had been demolished and Mr. Modi’s bungalow was 25th to be pulled down,” Sharada Powar, Sub Divisional Magistrate, said.
Three valuables from the bungalow — a Buddha statue, a chandelier, and a jacuzzi — are still kept in the area for the Enforcement Directorate (ED)to take away and auction. The other fixtures that were removed will be auctioned by Raigad district officials.
On January 25, district officials started the demolition work using bulldozers, but they found the work time-consuming due to the RCC construction. On January 27, structural engineers from Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar Technical University conducted a survey. The experts suggested that the district officers carry out the demolition with the help of controlled blasting.
Mr. Modi’s bungalow was attached by the ED following his involvement in the ₹13,000-crore Punjab National Bank fraud case. It was handed over to the collector’s office on January 24, after the ED seized two trucks full of valuables from the building.
In 2011, Mr. Modi had sought to legalise the structure by providing some documents before the then district collector. In 2018, Mr. Suryawanshi had filed an affidavit claiming that they needed to review the order, and on December 4, 2018, the bungalow was declared unauthorised, and Mr. Suryawanshi issued a notice to demolish the bungalow.
