Fifteen years after it first ordered the demolition of an alleged illegal shed on Mormugao Port Authority (MPA) land at Headland-Sada, the High Court of Bombay at Goa has directed the Mormugao Municipal Council (MMC) to raze the structure by August 28.
Hearing a contempt petition filed by the MPA on Wednesday, the High Court also directed the Chief Officer to disconnect the electricity supply to the structure within three days. The Chief Officer has been directed to remain personally present before the Bench on September 1 over failure to comply with fresh directions.
The shed, located on Chalta No 1 of PT Sheet No 7 at Headland-Sada, is popularly known as "Murgao Cha Raja" and has been used by local residents for Ganesh Chaturthi celebrations for over 15 years.
The dispute dates back to March 28, 2011, when the High Court directed the MMC CO to demolish the structure after finding it had been illegally erected on MPA property. The order subsequently attained finality after the Supreme Court dismissed a Special Leave Petition challenging it on December 15, 2020.
Despite the SC's dismissal of the challenge, the structure continued to remain standing.
The court had further noted that on September 9, 2025, the MMC CO had made a categorical statement before the High Court that the shed would be demolished within six weeks, assuring compliance with the 2011 order. However, the assurance was not acted upon.
Pointing to the continued non-compliance, the MPA approached the High Court once again through a fresh contempt petition.
Taking a serious view of the delay, the court has now fixed August 28 as the final deadline for demolition.
