By IANS
New Delhi : The Delhi High Court Wednesday directed the residents of Sainik Farms in the capital to demolish high boundary walls that flout building by-laws and asked the civic authorities to raze them if they failed to do so within two weeks.
A division bench of Chief Justice M.K. Sarma and Justice Sanjeev Khanna directed the residents including the petitioners to file their affidavit before the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) within two days that they would reduce the height on their own, and asked authorities to initiate action according to law if they fail to do so.
On May 9, the court had directed the MCD to demolish the high walls of the farmhouses in urban villages of the capital, which are famous as venues of marriage receptions and night parties.
The order came on a public interest litigation (PIL) seeking direction to the MCD for immediate action to stop rampant illegal construction going on in Sainik Farms area.
Court Commissioner Rajeev Awasthi had earlier submitted that the owners had erected high walls merely as "cover for ongoing unauthorised constructions in the area".
Awasthi pointed out that most parts of the boundary walls in the locality were found to be up to 25 feet high, flouting provisions of the building byelaws that allow 1.5 metre high walls in the area.
The bench had ordered: "We direct action by MCD to demolish all boundary walls found beyond the permissible limits so as to facilitate MCD inspectors to carry out inspections of any unauthorised constructions in any of the property."
Awasthi, whose report was founded on his inspection of the area, pointed out that 21 properties that were demolished by the civic body had already been reconstructed.