LUCKNOW, June 18 -- The Lucknow Municipal Corporation's (LMC) anti-encroachment drive has come under a cloud amid allegations that illegal structures built by corporators and other influential persons on parks and footpaths have been spared, even as vendors and small shopkeepers face regular action.

Residents and opposition corporators have alleged that public spaces and amenities developed by the Lucknow Development Authority (LDA) and other agencies have gradually been encroached upon by elected representatives and office-bearers through the construction of offices and other structures, reducing space meant for public use.

With most LDA schemes having been transferred to the LMC, the responsibility for maintaining parks and protecting...