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.A space with permanent structure under the Niralanagar flyover stretch. (HT)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 public land now rests with the civic body. However, despite repeated drives against street vendors and temporary encroachments, no action has been initiated against structures allegedly built by public representatives.One such case has surfaced beneath the Nirala Nagar flyover, where a permanent structure housing a corporator’s office has allegedly come up parallel to the railway line and adjacent to a public toilet built by the LMC. Residents claimed the structure occupies land meant for public use.A similar situation has emerged near Chandrashekhar Azad Park in Aliganj, where residents alleged that a ward corporator built a grilled office along the park boundary wall. The vacant area, which had long been used for parking vehicles, has now been blocked. A vendor has also set up a shop next to the structure, which displays the corporator’s name. Residents said the encroachment has narrowed the footpath and hampered pedestrian movement.In Indira Nagar, near Tiwari Crossing, a ruling party representative has allegedly constructed an office with tin sheds on the footpath. Similar conditions prevail in Viram Khand near Ram Bhawan, where a portion of a park has been converted into a seating area enclosed with grills.Opposition corporators alleged that BJP representatives were involved in encroaching upon public spaces and accused the civic body of failing to enforce rules uniformly. They said parks, footpaths and other civic amenities were created for residents and that illegal occupation by influential persons would only aggravate civic problems and further reduce the city’s already limited open spaces.Civic chief promises actionMunicipal commissioner Gaurav Kumar said the civic body would not permit illegal occupation of public land. “No encroachment will be allowed, whether it is on parks or footpaths. I will examine the matter and issue necessary directions to the zonal officials,” he said.The allegations have once again brought the focus on whether anti-encroachment drives in the state capital are being implemented uniformly or whether influential violators are escaping action while enforcement remains largely confined to vendors and economically weaker sections.Earlier, Kumar had said that in public parks, construction could be permitted only on 5% of the total area and that too exclusively for the park guard, not for office-related purposes.