Delhi HC seeks reply from urban board over removal of slum from notified area
New Delhi, February 17
The Delhi High Court (HC) today asked the Delhi Urban Shelter Improvement Board (DUSIB) to file an affidavit explaining the reasons for adding and then deleting a slum cluster in Mehrauli from the list of rehabilitated/notified JJ clusters.
The HC granted time to the counsel for DUSIB and Delhi Development Authority (DDA) to file their affidavits in the matter by February 21. It also asked the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) to file a short affidavit in the matter.
“This relates to 400 houses of people. You will have to give me (the court) reasons why you deleted it. How you added it first and then deleted it from the list. I want the details along with the reasons,” Justice Manmeet Pritam Singh Arora said. The HC was hearing a plea by Ghosiya Slum Colony in Mehrauli, which was to be demolished by the authorities.
The court said its interim order directing the authorities to maintain the status quo will continue till the next date of hearing, that is, February 28.
The petition has stated that Ghosiya Slum Colony is a jhuggi cluster duly enlisted in the list of rehabilitated/notified clusters published by DUSIB on its official website, which records 400 jhuggis, as does the Delhi Slum Rehabilitation Policy of 2015.
The counsel for DUSIB said that the cluster earlier was in the list, but now they have removed it. The counsel for DDA sought time to file the affidavit along with Google images of the site.
