Kathmandu. A dozer has been used on a controversial 7-storey building on the banks of Rudramati (Dhobikhola) in Anamnagar. The federal government, in coordination with the Kathmandu Metropolitan City, used the dozer on Sunday.

Homeowner Indra Chamling said that the construction of the house was completed about 5 years ago. He claimed that the building’s map was approved and that he has been paying taxes and revenue regularly.
“I am surprised that a dozer suddenly started working on a house that was built after getting the map approved by the ward office and completing all the procedures,” Chamling said. He expressed his displeasure over the damage to his house and questioned the administration’s working style.

While the demolition work was underway, Chamling accepted Prime Minister Balen Shah as a ‘patriotic leader’. Although he praised his enthusiasm for working, he complained that he was not given the opportunity to meet and discuss with him. He said, ‘We tried many times to meet him, but we were not successful. It would have been better if a citizen had been listened to.’

While expressing his pain, Chamling also made an interesting and sarcastic comment. He said, ‘I wish all the squatters in Nepal could have a similar 7-storey house and they too could live in a palace.’ He linked the pain of the bulldozer running over the property he had built with his hard work to the context of squatter management and criticized the government and the policy of the metropolis.

The building previously housed various media offices, spas and restaurants. The metropolis demolished the upper floors and parts that were against the map, saying that the structure had violated the river bank standards and had built more structures than the approved map. Although the landlord Chamling talked about the court order and his evidence, the metropolis stated that the illegal structure was removed after completing the legal process.