New Delhi, April 16
The Delhi High Court today imposed a fine on the Municipal Corporation of Delhi and the Delhi Police as it was not satisfied with their replies on how a building had come up inside Sainik Farms despite a specific order banning construction activity there.
Not satisfied by the explanations given by the Municipal Corporation of Delhi and the Delhi Police, the court ordered that Rs 3000 be recovered from each of them as cost.
The Deputy Commissioner of Police (Headquarters), Mr T. N. Mohan, in an affidavit before a division Bench comprising Justices A.D. Singh and B.M.Lokur, pointed out that the Assistant Commissioner of Police (Vigilance), B.R.Pant, who had conducted an inquiry into the alleged violation of the court’s January 12, 2001 order, found it was impossible to fix specific responsibility for the lapse on any police official.
It said this was so because there were a large number of openings into the Sainik Farms and only five main entry points were manned by the police and the MCD. It was, therefore, difficult to check the entry of building material into the posh South Delhi colony.
Stating that they were not satisfied with the replies given by the MCD and the police, the Bench observed that it was improbable that the construction came about without their knowledge. Noting that prompt action was taken to demolish the property, it said violation of the court order had, however, taken place and imposed costs.
The court was dealing with a public interest petition filed by Rajeev Malhotra against unauthorised construction in the colony. He had also produced photographs showing the construction activity inside the colony. The affidavit filed by the authorities said that the house in question, H-20, had a fence 20-feet-high, which was in violation of the building bye-laws, which say that a boundary cannot be higher than 1.5 m, and hence, the construction activity carried out there could not be detected till the structure was 20-feet high.
On March 5, the MCD had said that no building material was taken inside the Sainik Farms through its five entry points, which are manned by the corporation’s personnel.
The information was given by MCD Deputy Commissioner South Zone, Manoj Kumar, in an affidavit filed by the corporation’s counsel, Anil Grover.
The affidavit pointed out that the building was situated in a ‘remote area’ of village Neb Sarai and that the builder had raised a 20-ft-high boundary wall to hide the construction activity. The colony was so geographically located that temporary entry could be gained because of the character of the site, which was an agricultural land, it said.
The building was possibly constructed with material already stacked in the area, before the January 2001 order, which directed that no construction activity should be allowed inside the colony and also, that police and MCD personnel should be posted at all the five entry points to the colony, the affidavit said.
It added that the said building had since been demolished. The affidavit also stated that action had been taken against an Assistant Engineer and a Junior Engineer, and an Executive Engineer had been transferred, as part of the MCD’s actions against erring officials who allowed the building to come up. Regarding two other MCD officials who were convicted for contempt, it was said that they had been transferred and had not been promoted.
