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Unfinished ‘Taj on the Swan’ to be recycled into road building materials

Jon BassettWestern Suburbs Weekly

PANKAJ and Radhika Oswal’s unfinished ‘Taj-on-the-Swan’ mansion will be recycled into road building materials in a demolition contact agreed by Peppermint Grove Council on Tuesday.

“October 3 is likely to be a likely start date; it’s very likely,” council chief executive John Merrick told the Western Suburbs Weekly.

Bassendan-based demolishers Capital Recycling was awarded the contract, after the council received several bids to bring down the 20-room, Indian-style mansion.

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The council claims under WA Building Codes that the building has been derelict and abandoned since 2010.

“They are class-one demolition company, and all material from the mansion will be recycled at their Bayswater plant to make road base,” Mr Merrick said.

Earlier this year, the State Administrative Tribunal (SAT) ordered the Oswals to demolish the mansion by September 30, and the Federal Court found Mrs Oswal had defrauded creditors when she transferred the mansion’s mortgage to a Dubai holding company.

A Melbourne Supreme Court hearing continues into the 2010 collapse of the couple’s Pilbara fertiliser plant, involving Norwegian co-shareholder Yara, the ATO and the ANZ Bank.

The council claims the Oswals owe more than $100,000 in rates and they have provided no plan for the mansion’s future, renovation or security.

Mr Merrick said any outcome from the court case would not affect the mansion’s pending demolition because that legal action had no connection to the council’s claim the mansion was dangerous under the Codes, and the council had all its legal procedures in place.

Demolition has yet to be fully costed, and the cost could be recovered by any sale of the site, but it is planned to take two-to-three weeks, potentially between 7am and 4pm daily.

Mr Merrick said the council would ensure trucks used the narrow streets at appropriate times outside of arrivals and departures of students at nearby schools.

The council will beef up the mansion’s security against partygoers and thrill seekers only after the SAT September 30 deadline for the Oswals to take responsibility for the site.