The appointment of Rachappa A Chinivala to the legal cell of the Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike, has been challenged in the High Court of Karnataka.
In his petition, Madhu D T, an RTI activist, stated that the Palike has violated norms in appointing Chinivala. The Palike in its notification dated December 14, 2010, has set maximum age limit of the legal cell head as 62 years, while Chinivala, born on April 10, 1947, is 63 years and eight months old, he said.
Chinivala was appointed on January 28, 2011, for the period of a year, which was later extended. The Palike further extended the term on January 27, 2012, violating the norms, he has stated. Corporators have also been unhappy with functioning of the legal cell, criticising it as being ineffective in fighting legal battles over several property cases, incurring loss (in crores) to the Palike.