Patna, (BiharTimes): A single bench of the Patna High Court on Thursday passed an interim order staying the Patna Municipal Corporation’s order to seal the premises of Vishal Mega Mart on Fraser Road. The Mart was in the news recently not only for the deviation in its construction but also for attack on the mediapersons by its employees when they went there to cover an incident of fire.

Justice Navniti Prasad Singh passed the order on a petition of the Mart which submitted it has been incurring loss of lakhs of rupees daily because of the sealing. Earlier, the same bench had disposed of a writ petition of the Mart against the erstwhile Patna Regional Development Authority’s order to demolish the building housing the Mart. The court had then maintained that the PMC should take action regarding the alleged deviation from the sanctioned plan for the construction of the building.

The judge felt that the PMC had overreached the earlier order of the court which never allowed sealing or demolition of the building. It had simply asked the PMC to take action in accordance with law for the deviations from the sanctioned plan for the construction of the building.

The Municipal Corporation order on sealing came only a few days after the incident involving the attack on mediapersons and subsequent arrest of the Mart employees. The Mart issue now seems to have taken a political colour and had even divided the ruling establishment in the state. Ironically, when it came up some months back the state government establishment projected it as a big success story in the direction of inviting investment from outside.

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