Residents rush out with essentials from house

Kolkata: A four-storey building at 50/1-D/1, GJ Khan Road, owned by the Nisar family, was declared an illegal building by the govt after a fire on Tuesday, following which the unit's owner Zafar Nisar was arrested. Demolition of the building co-owned by Zafar and his father began on Wednesday evening.The Nisar family lived on the fourth floor while the floors below were used as the factory and office of Delta Leathers. The family said they had lived in the building for over 10 years and that the factory on the first floor had been operating for over three decades. Nisar lived there with his wife, three children, his brother, his brother's wife, their three children, and his father. They said they were now taking shelter at relatives' places.The building, in a congested neighbourhood, has another three-storey building to its left that is also owned by the Nisars. This building is also unauthorised and will also be demolished, authorities said. On the right side is an old, dilapidated building. Opposite that is a mosque and an under-construction building.The family said they had a trade licence and valid papers, and alleged they were not given a chance to furnish the documents to the authorities."We deserve a chance to contest the claim that the building was unauthorised. We are Indians. When the law of the land states that notice must be served and the accused be allowed to respond, why were we thrown out of the house within an hour and demolition carried out in such haste?" questioned a family member who emerged from the house clutching some valuables that she was able to gather before the hammers went to work. The family said they came to know about the demolition from the media. They said they rushed back on hearing the news to salvage their belongings, alleging they were allowed only a few minutes inside on Wednesday before the razing began. Cops reportedly assured them they would be allowed in briefly on Thursday to collect more belongings."We understand there was a fire which claimed the lives of two workers, who were like our family members. When cops arrested my husband, there was no resistance as we know this is part of the legal proceedings. We wish we were given time and opportunity to appeal for a stay order against the demolition and display our documents," said Sana Shakil, Zafar's wife.