HARISH TANDON,J. - (1.) Without entering into the submissions so advanced on behalf of the respective parties on the proposition of law and its nuances, this Court feels that the matter can be simply disposed of by passing a direction upon the competent authority to consider the matter.
(2.) Admittedly, the Building Rules, 2009 provides that unless a report is obtained from the Chief Valuer and Surveyor's Department on a regular line of the street, the building plan cannot be processed for sanction. The petitioner applied for such report wherefrom it appears that there is a proposal for alignment of the street pending since 1919. The petitioner approached the Municipal Commissioner seeking cancellation of such approved alignment under sub-section (6) of Section 357 of the Kolkata Municipal Corporation Act, 1980. The said Section reads thus - "357. Defining regular line of a street. - (1) The Municipal Commissioner may, with due regard to the minimum widths prescribed for various categories of streets including the footpaths abutting the same, define the regular line on one or both sides of any public street or portions thereof in accordance with the rules and the regulations made in this behalf and may, with the previous sanction of the Corporation, redefine at any time any such regular line :
(3.) Provided that, before redefining such regular line, the Corporation shall, by public notice, afford a reasonable opportunity to the residents of premises abutting on such public street to make suggestions or objections with respect to the proposed redefinition and shall consider all such suggestions or objections which may be made within one month from the date of publication of such notice :;