A town planning officer (TPO) of the Amdavad Municipal Corporation (AMC) has resigned after a heated exchange with Deputy Mayor Jatin Patel over an approved building plan.

At the centre of the controversy is Amit Panchal, an Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) worker and resident of the 40-year-old Dev Mandir Society in Chandlodiya. Panchal submitted a plan to demolish his house and construct a new one; and the AMC’s Building Plan Scrutiny Department (BPSD) approved the plan.

However, Deputy Mayor Patel and town planning committee chairperson Pritesh Mehta were allegedly not consulted on the issue. When the two arrived at the BPSD’s Mithakhali office and found TPO Rajesh Patel absent, they questioned other officials, demanding to know how Panchal’s plan was approved without their nod. 

When TPO Patel arrived at the scene, a heated verbal exchange followed. Thereafter, Patel submitted his resignation to Municipal Commissioner M Thennarasan. 

While the deputy mayor has admitted to using abusive language, he added that he had “controlled himself” due to Mehta’s presence. 

‘Discrepancies and irregularities’

Jatin Patel highlighted discrepancies in the application, noting the property card showed a built-up area of 69.3 square metres, while the applicant claimed 189 square metres. He also pointed out inconsistencies in the approval process and boundary assessments.

He further emphasised that the society opposed the plan approval, alleging the applicant had encroached on society land. 

He told Gujarat Samachar that he had first written to the Commissioner on May 13, enquiring if plans could even be approved based on photocopies, but received no response. 

The approval granted to Panchal’s plan was revoked after the argument, which took place on Aug 6. 

Who is Rajesh Patel? 

Notably, Rajesh Patel is employed on contract following his retirement. He previously quit his role as town-planning officer with the town planning and estate management department in 2022, around the time the state government announced a new impact fee scheme. One of several senior officials to have resigned citing work pressure as a reason, his TPO’s resignation in 2022 left four of five TPO positions in the AMC vacant. 

Persons close to the development say Commissioner Thennarasan is yet to accept Patel’s resignation over the argument with the deputy mayor. 

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