Mysuru: Senior Supreme Court advocate and former Karnataka Additional Advocate General (AAG), Devadatt Kamat, visited the Lansdowne Building this morning to conduct an informal inspection as part of preparations for filing an affidavit in connection with the Special Leave Petition (SLP) on the proposed demolition of the building.

His visit follows instructions from Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, who, in a meeting held yesterday in Bengaluru with elected representatives and senior officials from Mysuru, advised authorities to contact Kamat to help resolve the ongoing dispute surrounding demolition of Lansdowne and Devaraja Market buildings.

The visit, however, was not an official one. Kamat, who was in Mysuru for personal reasons, took the opportunity to inspect the building informally. While his inspection is not officially linked to the State’s involvement in the matter, it holds significance as the case progresses.

The Supreme Court is set to hear the SLP later this month, challenging the Karnataka High Court’s August 2023 decision. The High Court had dismissed a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) which sought to stop the Karnataka government from demolishing or reconstructing the historic 19th-century Lansdowne and Devaraja Market buildings, both of which hold cultural and architectural significance for Mysuru.

In an earlier order, the Supreme Court directed the Karnataka Government to submit an affidavit detailing the status of the Lansdowne Building, which is expected to be part of the proceedings when the case is heard.

Kamat was accompanied by several top officials from the Mysuru City Corporation (MCC), including MCC Commissioner Ashaad-Ur-Rahman Sharif, Superintending Engineer K.J. Sindhu, Executive Engineer Nagaraj, Senior Health Officer Dr. Venkatesh, and Deputy Commissioner of Revenue, Somashekar.