The Supreme Court on Friday agreed to hear in open court review pleas of some of the flat owners in Maradu near Kochi whose houses are due for demolition seeking appropriate relief from the builders.

A bench headed by Justice Arun Mishra said it would hear the review petitions in an open court on the point of appropriate relief from the builders, agencies reported.

The counsel appearing for the Kerala government submitted a status report and said the State had partially complied with the earlier apex court order of demolition of the Maradu flats. Following the court’s order, the state government has already paid 27.99 crore as interim compensation to the flat owners and will pay them another 33.51 crore, the state counsel said. The apex court had in September directed the Kerala government to pay Rs 25 lakh to each of the residents of the four apartment blocks within a month and that the money be recoverable from the builders or promoters.

The court then asked the State government to ensure full compliance of apex court’s earlier order, including the demolition of the Maradu flats. The original demolition order was passed in May this following submission of a report by a three-member committee appointed by the court that had said that the constructions in the area came up in violation of the Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ). The court had noted that the local panchayat had granted the building permits without the mandatory permission by the Coastal Zone Management Authority (CZMA).

—India Legal Bureau