By IANS
New Delhi : The Delhi High Court Wednesday pulled up the central government for going soft on illegal constructions and alterations carried out in official bungalows of some union ministers in the high-profile Lutyen’s Bungalow Zone here.
Dismissing the centre’s plea that demolition would put the occupants to inconvenience, a division bench of Chief Justice M.K. Sharma and Justice Reva Khetrapal said: “You (government) should show your sincerity. Inconvenience to an occupant cannot be a ground for non-removal of illegal constructions.”
The centre ion its affidavit Tuesday said that occupants of 55 bungalows had violated the revised guidelines of 2006 and the ministry of urban development was taking action against the violators.
The Central Public Works Department (CPWD) has to take action against 51 VIPs occupying the bungalows, including the Akbar Road residences of Union Ministers Ambika Soni and Arjun Singh, the affidavit said.
The court’s remark for immediate action against the violators followed a submission of the centre’s counsel that “removal of illegal constructions would cause inconvenience to the occupants”. The centre sought more time for demolition of the illegal structures.
The court said: “Everybody would say so because they will be restrained from using the additional space.”
“Make uniform laws. Those following the law are deprived of using additional space and those who take law into their hand are allowed to occupy the additional space,” the bench noted.