MUMBAI, July 26 -- The Bombay High Court on Friday set up a two-member committee comprising Justice (Retd) GS Patel and senior advocate Naushad Engineer to suggest measures that would introduce transparency and accountability into the functioning of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC). The order was delivered after the court found glaring illegalities relating to criminal prosecution for illegally occupying tenements. A division-bench of Justice GS Kulkarni and Justice Arif Doctor passed the order on a petition filed by a Mumbai resident, who alleged that shops and residential units had been occupied in an under-construction building in Dadar West, without obtaining occupancy certificates. Samartha Krupa, a cessed building at the junction of Gokhale Road and Ranade Road, had been under redevelopment by Shree Swami Constructions since 2012 but was abandoned by the developer in 2017. The developer then approached the local civic office for partial occupancy certificates for certain portions that it was able to develop. The application was rejected. Sameer Patil, a tenement owner in the building, approached the high court in 2017, claiming that not only was there considerable delay in completing the construction, there were several illegalities in the project as well. On July 16, the court noticed that some commercial units and a few residential units in the building had been occupied even though construction was incomplete. The court said it was shocked that no occupancy certificates had been issued to the occupants. The court then ordered the officers of the local civic office to submit an affidavit, explaining the correct position and what action had been taken against the errant occupants. The replies revealed that 12 of the 14 commercial units had been occupied without an occupancy certificate. Notices to vacant the premises were sent to the occupants on July 17. The court also noted that, although the local body had initiated criminal prosecution against the occupants of certain residential units, they had been acquitted by a trial court on the ground that the inspecting officer lacked documentary evidence....