A dispute over an alleged encroachment on a 39-guntha Jejuri municipal plot near the town’s bus stand has prompted the Jejuri Municipal Council to seek an official survey and boundary demarcation. The assurance followed a protest by the Bahujan Hakk Parishad outside the council office on Friday, November 13, where activists demanded action against any commercial buildings found on municipal land.
The disputed property is identified as Survey No. 447, formerly Survey No. 1092. Protesters alleged that parts of commercial buildings constructed over the past few years have extended into the municipal plot after private parcels in the adjoining area were bought and sold in guntha units. The allegations have not yet been established through an official measurement.
The municipal land is located next to Survey No. 448, formerly Survey No. 1093 and City Survey No. 1511, a 121-guntha parcel described in the report as privately owned. The area around the Jejuri bus stand has seen commercial construction following transactions involving private land, according to the report. Bahujan Hakk Parishad city president Yashwant Dodke alleged that some buildings constructed after private land purchases stand partly within the municipal property. He also accused the municipal administration of deliberately ignoring the matter.
The dispute gained wider attention after a six-guntha private parcel adjoining the disputed land was reportedly sold for crores of rupees around 15 days before the protest. Dodke had subsequently submitted a representation seeking an official measurement of Survey No. 447, permanent boundary marking and a signboard identifying the land as municipal property.
The representation also sought legal action against building owners and private land sellers if commercial structures belonging to people other than those allotted land under municipal resolutions were found within the plot. It further demanded that sale and registration of adjoining private plots be suspended until the measurement and boundary demarcation were completed.
Following the protest, municipal officials Sunil Tajwe and Balasaheb Khomne gave the demonstrators a written assurance. The council said an application had been submitted to the Land Records Office for a formal government measurement of Survey No. 447. The written response stated that legal action would be taken against the concerned parties if commercial buildings were found within the municipal plot after the boundaries were established.
The episode has also raised questions about the reliability of land records and the monitoring of construction around public land. Shiv Sena city president Kiran Davalkar and local residents demanded an inquiry into the functioning of the Jejuri Land Records Office. They alleged that changes had been made in documents over the past two years, though the report does not establish whether any records were altered.
The protesters also sought action against the private owners involved in selling the land. Dodke said he would approach the High Court in the matter. The immediate official next step is the government measurement of Survey No. 447 by the Land Records Office, after which the council has said it will determine whether any construction occupies municipal land and decide on further legal action.
