New Delhi: The Delhi High Court on Wednesday refused to hear the plea against the ongoing demolition drive in Jahangirpuri in the national capital, after taking note of the submission, in which it was pointed out the status quo direction of the Supreme Court in the matter.
On Wednesday morning, counsels Shahrukh Alam and Ajit Pujari approached the division bench headed by Acting Chief Justice Vipin Sanghi and Justice Navin Chawla for an urgent listing of the matter. The Jahangirpuri area in northwest Delhi witnessed violent communal clashes that erupted between two groups of people, belonging to different communities, during a Shobha Yatra procession on the occasion of Hanuman Jayanti on April 16. During the course of the hearing, Additional Solicitor General Chetan Sharma had opposed the mentioning of the matter, stating it is already before the Supreme Court. Notably, the apex court on Wednesday ordered status quo on the demolition drive being carried out by the municipal corporation against the alleged encroachers in the city and agreed to list the matter for hearing on Thursday before an appropriate bench. After the development also, Senior advocate Dushyant Dave again mentioned the Jahangirpuri demolition matter before a bench headed by Chief Justice N.V. Ramana, saying despite the top court’s order, the municipal corporation has not stopped the demolition drive.
Dave said the top court order in the morning ordered status quo on the demolition, yet the municipal corporation did not stop the demolition drive at Jahangirpuri. He urged the top court to ask the secretary-general to communicate the court’s order to the North Delhi Municipal Corporation (NDMC), Mayor NDMC, and the Commissioner of Delhi Police. “Once it’s widely reported in the media, this is not appropriate…,” said Dave.
Senior advocate Kapil Sibal also mentioned a plea filed by Jamiat Ulama-I-Hind questioning the validity of demolition launched after riots in several BJP-ruled states, including Madhya Pradesh’s Khargone. The bench agreed to list it with the Jahangirpuri matter on Thursday.
—IANS