Fri Jan 31 10:24:07 IST 2025: ## Kolkata Flat Buyers Protest Demolition of Tilting Building
**KOLKATA, January 31, 2025** – Flat buyers in Kolkata’s Tangra area vehemently protested the attempted demolition of their under-construction building on Thursday, January 30th. The six-story building, along with an adjacent occupied building, was found to be precariously tilting last week. The protesting buyers claim they received no official demolition order from the Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) and locked the building’s gates to prevent demolition crews from entering.
Approximately 35 flat buyers, many of whom are daily wage earners, had invested heavily in the flats, paying between ₹13 lakhs and ₹16 lakhs towards the total cost of ₹22 lakhs per unit. They claim they were scheduled to move in early 2025, and the builder, Surojit ‘Taklu’ Manna, has since become unreachable. The buyers expressed desperation, stating that the loss of their homes would be financially devastating and potentially life-threatening.
The KMC had issued notices to vacate the adjacent, occupied building, Pushpanjali Apartments, on January 22nd, citing dangerous conditions. However, no such notice was given to the buyers of the under-construction building. The protest involved police intervention and drew a large crowd of onlookers.
The buyers also questioned why the allegedly illegal construction was permitted for so long without intervention from the KMC or police, and why only the under-construction building was targeted for demolition, despite numerous other potentially illegal structures in the area. Mayor Firhad Hakim had previously stated the under-construction building’s demolition was necessary to assess the stability of Pushpanjali Apartments. The situation remains tense, with the flat buyers determined to prevent the demolition without proper legal process and compensation.
First Piper 