India, Aug. 27 -- Dismissing petitions challenging notices issued by the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) for removal of unauthorised constructions, the Bombay High Court (HC) on Tuesday imposed costs of Rs.10 lakh on the petitioner in the hope that it would be a "deterrent for all law-breakers".

Coming down heavily on both the petitioner who erected unauthorised constructions over approximately 34,000 sq ft in Andheri (West) over the years and the BMC that failed to act against it on time, the court observed, "Unfortunately, having dealt with several cases, it is evident that the public mindset is to carry out construction first and seek regularisation only if, and when, the concerned authority ever acts. There are only negligib...