BHUBANESWAR: The Odisha Human Rights Commission (OHRC) has come down heavily on Bhubaneswar Development Authority (BDA) for its failure in protecting the interest of resident welfare associations (RWAs), especially the Z1 RWA whose application for registration is pending for more than two years.Hearing a petition filed by Z1 RWA secretary Kalpataru Pattnaik, the Commission observed that the rights of persons, who are lawful owners of flats, cannot be tinkered with by the act of any person which otherwise amounts to violation of human rights. The flat owners have their right to form an association and there shouldn’t be any direct or indirect attempt to prevent them from doing it, the panel said.
Stating that the BDA is a statutory body under the Odisha Development Authority Act, the rights body said it is unfortunate that the authority has not submitted a report which it had been asked to submit in November 2019 in connection with protection of interest of the flat owners. It also warned that if BDA fails to submit its report before next hearing, the member secretary will be asked to appear in person.
“The BDA has a role in regulating and protecting the flat owners’ interest and they can not be subjected to harassment by the promoters, developers or builders,” the Commission said while asking the agency to ensure that no flat owner is intimidated at the instance of any person or group in the guise of forming any new association.
The OHRC also directed the authorities concerned to issue notice to ADM, Bhubaneswar seeking a report as to why the application of Z1 RWA is pending for the last two years in violation of human rights. It also asked police to ensure that there is no interference from any quarters in the activities of Z1 RWA.