Two senior Delhi Government officials have been summoned by Delhi High Court for failing to comply with its earlier directives to draw up a time-bound action plan for removal of unauthorised religious edifices.
A special bench of justices S Muralidhar and Rajiv Sahai Endlaw said the Chief Secretary and the Principal Secretary (Revenue) were directed to file separate compliance reports regarding removal of unauthorised religious structures and also negotiations concerning 34 other such structures, but no such compliance report has been filed.
“Given the repeated directives issued by the Court in the past several hearings, and considering the gravity of the matter, the Court requires the Chief Secretary as well as the Principal Secretary (Revenue) of Delhi Government to remain present in Court on the next date to explain why the directives were not complied with,” the bench observed, fixing August 26 as the next date.
Earlier, taking note of the Delhi Government’s Religious Committee report on a large number of unauthorised religious structures on government land in the city, the bench had issued certain directives. It had directed the Chief Secretary to convene an urgent meeting to draw up a time-bound action plan for removal of such structures and work out modalities to negotiate with residents who are likely expected to raise objections to the demolition.
The officer was directed to hold a meeting within two weeks with the Joint Secretary of the Union Home Ministry, the Principal Secretary (Revenue), GNCTD, the Vice Chairman of DDA, the Delhi Police Commissioner and the Special Secretary, Home Department, GNCTD to draw up the action plan and file a compliance report.
The Court has been monitoring the issue of encroachment of Government land since 2005, taking suo motu cognisance of media reports that nearly 43,000 acres of Government land were lying vacant and being trespassed on by land mafia and unauthorised persons.
In July last year, the Court had hauled up the Government for failing to take measures to survey land in the city and pulled up the DDA for its failure to ensure that it
was in possession of Government land.