PANAJI
The North Goa District and Sessions Court on Saturday granted an interim stay on an order of the Deputy Director of Panchayats (North) concerning the proposed Unity Mall at Chimbel, temporarily giving relief to the Chimbel Village Panchayat from issuing a construction licence to the Goa Tourism Development Corporation (GTDC).
With the stay in force, the panchayat is not bound to clear the construction licence at least until the next hearing, scheduled for December 17.
The court’s order followed a petition filed by residents challenging the Deputy Director’s decision that had dismissed an appeal against directions issued by the Tiswadi Block Development Officer (BDO).
The BDO had earlier directed the panchayat to grant a construction licence to GTDC for the project.
The legal dispute has moved across multiple forums in recent weeks. On December 4, the High Court of Bombay at Goa disposed a writ petition challenging the construction licence for the Unity Mall in view of fresh proceedings before the Directorate of Panchayats.
Earlier, the High Court had granted a stay on the BDO’s directive after an intervener questioned the officer’s jurisdiction, arguing that the BDO had no authority to direct a VP to issue a construction licence. He had contended that GTDC should have approached the Deputy Director or Additional Director of Panchayats after the panchayat refused permission.
The Chimbel VP had rejected the construction licence following a Gram Sabha resolution opposing the project. The State government had subsequently told the High Court that the Unity Mall would proceed only after obtaining all statutory permissions.
