Mangaluru, August 3: In connection to the forcible eviction of a bar and restaurant from a building by the owner of the building on Sunday August 2nd, near old State Bank at Ullal; the police arrested 15 people and seized a JCB.
In his police complaint, the borrower is claimed to have lost eight lakhs rupees in this eviction drive.
In an operation launched on Sunday morning, the venture, ‘Ashok Bar and Restaurant’, owned by Raveendra Ullal, was evicted from the building. The Ullal police have registered case against over 15 persons including owner of the building, Lalita Ravi. The driver of the JCB was also arrested. All of them were produced in the court.
Since the past 22 years, Raveendra has been running the said bar and restaurant near the Old State Bank. About two years ago, this building was sold by earlier owner, Raghuram, to Lalita Ravi. After the sale, other shops were made to vacate the premises. As the bar and restaurant owner remained stubborn without evacuating the place, it was demolished forcibly, it is said.
A ditch was reportedly dug on the stretch leading to the bar and restaurant, and later the wall of the building where the bar was situated was demolished. Bar owner said that he suffered a loss of around eight lakh rupees due to the damage caused to things inside the bar and also the liquor stored there.
A person associated with the building owner claimed that in spite of repeated notices having been served on him to vacate the building, the bar owner refused to budge. He said that the owner wanted to demolish the building and construct a new one in its place. He also said that the bar owner had been informed in advance about the eviction drive, and was also informed to vacate his things. He also added that the room in which wine shop was permitted to be run has not been damaged. The room by its side had been demolished and that there is no information about liquor having been stored there.
The bar owner Raveendra claimed that he had been trying for an alternative venue to run his bar and restaurant, but no suitable building could be found since the last one year. He said he had sought time from the building owner till December this year. He has a valid permit from the Excise Department to run the facility there, and that the building owner had taken rent payment till May this year, he said.
Raveendra, also said that he was informed about the demolition drive from a bar employee. When he reached the building, most of the liquor bottles were found to have been destroyed under the debris of the building, and the remaining were taken away by locals, he said.
