Remove encroachment on Chandni Chowk roads by religious structures: High Court

NEW DELHI: The Delhi High Court today directed the municipal corporation to remove encroachments by religious structures on the roads of Chandni Chowk by the end of May and asked the city government and police to extend all cooperation to the civic agency.

A bench of justices S Ravindra Bhat and S Muralidhar gave the direction after it was told that a religious committee, set up by the government to deal with issue of encroachment of the roads by the structures, was yet to take a decision.

The court said the ownership of the land was with MCD and since the authorities do not dispute there was encroachment, the civic body should remove it.

The court has been monitoring the issue of redevelopment of the walled city through a petition filed by NGO Manushi Sangathan in 2007.

With regard to development of non-motorised vehicle (NMV) lanes on six arterial roads of the city, the court directed the city government to place on record the pictures and maps of areas where such lanes are actually located.

The bench also said that it will next week visit one of the arterial roads where the government has claimed NMV lanes have been built to segregate cycles and cycle-rickshaws from regular traffic.

On shifting of seven BSES transformers which are encroaching upon a main road in Chandni Chowk, the court was informed by the PWD that five would be tentatively shifted by May 31.

Regarding the remaining two, PWD said these would be moved into an underground basement to be built in front of the Town Hall there and tenders for the same have been issued.

Pursuant to the submission, the court directed the city government to award the contract for construction of the basement in two weeks and to ensure the work is completed in three months.

On the issue of creating a parking lot at Gandhi Maidan in the walled city, the court directed MCD to file an affidavit indicating timeline for completion of the project.

It also directed MCD to hand over to PWD the land at Dangal Maidan in Chandni Chowk for parking use and added that all encroachments be removed from that site.