Uttarakhand High Court acting Chief Justice VK Bist inspected the old jail building here on the weekend and instructed district administration to stop construction work of the new Collectorate building at the old jail garden. During Bist's visit, the district judge, chief judicial magistrate and others also accompanied him during his inspection of the old jail building established in 1902 during British rule.
The acting Chief Justice inspected the old jail garden where the Collectorate building is being constructed and the adjoining site where the Pauri municipality is constructing shops. Before the arrival of Bist, the Pauri municipal board president Yashpal Benam reached the gate of old jail building and then accompanied Bist on his inspection of the old jail building. Benam tried to convince the acting chief justice that the new collectorate building was being built at the old jail garden, which was more suited for developing a park. While inspecting the site of the new Collectorate building, Bist questioned why the construction had not been stopped yet and instructed the administration officer present on site to ensure that not a single brick is added to the construction.
Talking to The Pioneer, the Pauri District Magistrate Chandra Shekhar Bhatt said that the instruction of the acting chief justice was being complied with and the construction had been stopped.
It is pertinent to mention here that a PIl was filed in the High Court in the past seeking a stop on the construction of the new Collectorate building in the jail garden and the court had then ordered interim stay on the construction. later a counter PIl was filed and substantiated with various affidavits stating that the facts stated in the earlier PIl had presented a false picture. Hearing on this the HC had dismissed the earlier petition last year. The court had then ordered resumption of work on the construction of the new Collectorate building and had also asked the municipality to explain under whose authority were the shops being constructed alongside the old jail garden.