Police and municipal officials in Maharashtra’s Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar on Wednesday demolished alleged unauthorised structures linked to an AIMIM corporator, including a house where a suspended Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) employee accused in a religious conversion and harassment case had allegedly been sheltered.
Civic officials said the Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar Municipal Corporation carried out the demolition drive in the Kausar Baug area using earthmovers and anti-encroachment teams, with police deployed at the site.
The action targeted properties linked to AIMIM corporator Matin Patel after the civic body issued notices on Saturday alleging illegal construction at his residence and an office in the locality.
Patel had moved a local court seeking a stay on the demolition, but relief was not granted, according to PTI.
Mayor Sameer Rajurkar said Patel had been given three days to respond to the notice and that further action would follow in accordance with the law if the explanation was found unsatisfactory. He also said Patel could face disqualification if found guilty of carrying out unauthorised construction.
Members of Patel’s family had earlier sought more time to respond, arguing that the three-day notice period was inadequate and citing legal protections against demolition without due process.
The demolition comes amid heightened scrutiny over the use of bulldozer action against persons accused in criminal cases. In November 2024, the Supreme Court ruled that demolishing properties as a punitive measure against accused persons was illegal.
The property in question was allegedly used to shelter suspended TCS employee Nida Khan, who was arrested on May 7 from a bungalow in the city’s Naregaon area after being absconding since April 10.
Khan was named in a police case alleging that she and others hurt religious sentiments and harassed a 23-year-old woman colleague.
According to the complaint, Khan allegedly encouraged the woman, who belongs to a Scheduled Caste community, to recite the Islamic declaration of faith, observe fasting during Ramzan and alter her dressing habits. Police also booked Khan under the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act.
Police alleged that two other accused, Danish Sheikh and Tausif Attar, made derogatory remarks about Hindu deities. Investigators also accused Sheikh of sexually assaulting the complainant on the pretext of marriage, while Attar allegedly sought sexual favours and threatened to disclose details of her personal relationships to her family.
Between March 26 and April 3, Nashik Police registered nine cases against eight TCS employees over allegations of sexual harassment and hurting religious sentiments involving nine complainants. All eight accused have since been arrested.
TCS had suspended the employees named in the case and launched an internal inquiry. The company earlier said it maintains a “zero-tolerance policy” towards coercion or misconduct and was cooperating with law enforcement agencies.