The Supreme Court on Friday stayed the demolition of a portion of a restaurant at Anjuna in North Goa, which was in the news recently following the death of BJP leader Sonali Phogat.
The stay order pertained to demolition of structures situated on a particular survey number only.
A bench headed by Chief Justice Uday Umesh Lalit made it clear that unauthorized constructions situated on the land other than the specified survey number may be demolished.
Passing an urgent order, the bench asked the counsel for the Goa Coastal Zone Management Authority to convey the order to the authorities instantly for compliance.
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The bench asked the restaurant and bar owner of 'Curlies' restaurant to suspend commercial activities for the time being.
The Goa government on Friday morning began demolishing the restaurant for alleged violation of the Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) norms.
The iconic restaurant located on Goa’s famous Anjuna beach, was in news recently after Phogat was found partying at the outlet hours before her death. Its owner Edwin Nunes was among four persons arrested in the Phogat death case and he was later granted bail.
The GCZMA issued a fresh order on Thursday ordering the demolition of Curlies, said the official. The GCZMA issued the first order of demolition in 2016 which was challenged by the management of Curlies before the NGT.
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The case was heard on September 6 by the NGT bench headed by Justice Adarsh Kumar Goel and it upheld the GCZMA order and disposed of the petition filed by the restaurant management. The official said the restaurant has come up in a 'no development zone' in violation of CRZ norms.
According to police, the BJP leader, a former TikTok star and contestant on the reality show 'Bigg Boss', was allegedly drugged at the restaurant before her death on August 23. The Goa Coastal Zone Management Authority (GCZMA) is likely to demolish the controversial restaurant after its management failed to get any relief from the National Green Tribunal (NGT) in a case dating back to 2016.
The state police have arrested five people and booked two on charges of murder." The police department is investigating Phogat's death. Let the investigation reveal the truth behind her death," the police said.
(with PTI inputs)
