A plastic surgeon who erected a controversial “disgrace” of a blockade at an historic Aberdeen harbour has been told to remove it by Aberdeen City Council after officers found it to be restricting the public from their rights of access.
In December Pralhad Kolhe, a consultant plastic surgeon who owns part of the bay at Cove Harbour, put in place four huge boulders to prevent vehicular access to the pier of the traditional port.
The move came after a series of conflicts between Mr Kolhe and the fishermen of Cove Harbour, whose families have fished from the site for generations.
Mr Kolhe had previously posted red warning tickets on cars parked in the area, and had put in place signage indicating that the harbour is private property.
He is currently locked in ongoing legal proceedings with the Cove Fishermen’s Association, which represents around 10 boat owners, in an attempt to force them to remove their vessels – of which some of the fishermen rely on for their livelihoods – from the site.
But last night Cove councillor Stephen Flynn was sent a letter by officers from the city council, saying that the current physical blockades in place, which also include piles of rubble, should be removed by Mr Kolhe.
The letter stated: “Having visited the site and discussed the matter with Legal and Democratic Services it is our position that the public are currently being blocked and/or deterred from exercising the access rights they are entitled to at Cove Harbour under Part One of the Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2003 and Section 3(3) of the Prescription and Limitation (Scotland) Act 1973.
“With this in mind it is our position that this situation should be remedied by the landowner.
“To this end I have written to the landowner and I am currently awaiting a response.”
Jim Adam, the chairman of the Cove Fishermen’s Association, welcomed the news of the council’s intervention in the situation, but worried that his association’s legal issues with Mr Kolhe are far from over.
Mr Adam said: “It’s a step in the right direction on the council’s behalf.
“I don’t think it will affect our legal proceedings too much, as the threat of removing our vessels will still hang there, I think.
“Many of the fishermen will be delighted with this news, and it’s good that so many people are supportive of this.”
Mr Flynn was also pleased with the council’s move to assist his constituents.
He said: “This is excellent news, I’m absolutely delighted that the council has taken action, and I’m sure the entire community will be extremely pleased at this news.
“Putting stones up in the first place was a disgrace, there’s nothing else to say about that.
“What we need now is for the land owner to heed the council’s notice and to take action to remove the stones and other obstacles which he’s put in place.
“The site needs to be clear to the public, they should have access to it, the council has made that clear.
“I hope that that takes place over the next couple of days.
“It’s obviously terribly difficult to comment on how this will affect the legal battle, but I am obviously supportive of the fishermen’s cause, and if anything this will highlight to the community that the action being taken by the landowner is incorrect, not that they need any more encouragement on that one as the community are of course entirely behind the fishermen.”
When asked by the Press and Journal last night, Mr Kolhe declined to comment.