The municipal corporations have "derelicted" their duty to prevent unauthorised buildings from coming up in the city, an exasperated Delhi High Court today said, pulling up the civic bodies for the "hopeless" situation in the national capital.
A bench of Acting Chief Justice Gita Mittal and Justice C Hari Shankar said that citizens are able to get away with not following the law because the municipal officials, who are responsible for implementing the regulations, are allowing it to happen.
The court said that the officials swing into action and book properties only after notices are issued in PILs. After that demolition orders are issued, but never enforced on the grounds that police force was not available.
"That is the standard operating procedure. We are exasperated with these (unauthorised construction) matters. How can someone even dig a hole in the ground to build a structure without your (MCDs) permission?
"What have you done to the city! If only you would do your job, Delhi would not be like this. It is such a hopeless situation," the bench said.
The court further said that the corporations are expected to "act with promptitude" when any illegal construction starts.
"Failure to do so is dereliction of duty and must entail disciplinary action apart from attracting penal consequences under the IPC," the bench said.
The court also said that the thousands of tonnes of garbage generated by the city is also on account of the illegal constructions.
In one of the matters related to encroachment of forest land by multi-storeyed buildings in Neb Sarai area of south Delhi, the court said somebody from the forest department and the south Delhi municipal corporation (SDMC) "must go to jail".
The bench said such buildings could not have come up without either authority being aware of it and directed them to comply with its earlier orders to take action against the encroachment and unauthorised construction in the area.
In another PIL related to unauthorised construction in Lado Sarai area of south Delhi, the court directed the corporation of the area to file a status report indicating action taken against illegal buildings.
The report shall also indicate the names of the officials of the building department of SDMC who were responsible for that area for the past several years.
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