PILs blackmail to stall infra projects, says SC

The top court on Friday observed public interest litigations are being increasingly used as instruments of blackmail to target infrastructure projects, particularly in Delhi and Mumbai. A bench comprising CJI DY Chandrachud and Justice PS Narasimha verbally remarked that when a particular property is targeted in a PIL, the high court is often aware of the intentions of the party that has moved the court.

"PILs could become an instrument of blackmail when it is an issue of an infrastructure project. This actually makes a plank to target such projects. The high court has actually smelled the rat here.This is happening across Delhi, Mumbai, etc," the bench said. The bench said in such cases of redevelopment projects, another competitor is behind such petitions and they join with other builders. The bench upheld an order of the Bombay High Court which had levied a penalty of Rs one lakh on a society for filing a PIL for extraneous, motivated reasons bereft of any public interest.