Image Courtesy:timesofindia.indiatimes.com
Chief Justice DN Patel and Justice Jyoti Singh, hearing the matter for temporary suspension of construction work on Central Vista Redevelopment Project amid Covid-19, have allowed the project work, dismissing the petition.
The Division Bench ruled that the work currently ongoing is part and parcel of the project and of vital importance and cannot be seen in isolation. Bar & Bench quoted the Bench saying, “It is an essential project of national importance. Public is vitally interested in the project.”
It further held that this plea is not a “genuine” public interest litigation but a “motivated” one, and proceeded to impose costs of Rs. 1 lakh on the petitioners Anya Malhotra and Sohail Hashmi. The court said, “They have to complete the construction before November 2021. Time is of essence. Once workers are staying at site and all facilities are provided and Covid-19 behaviour are adhered to, there is no reason to stop the project. This is not a genuine PIL.”
The Delhi High Court Bench had reserved its judgment on May 17 after hearing Senior Advocate Siddharth Luthra for the petitioners, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta for the Central Government and Senior Advocate Maninder Singh appearing for Shapoorji Pallonji Group, the contractor for Central Vista Project.
The plea before the Delhi High Court had argued that there was no rationale for classifying the Central Vista project as an “essential service”, merely because some executive mandated contractual deadline was required to be met. But the Central Government had argued that the construction activities currently ongoing in and around Rajpath and India Gate did not pertain to the new Parliament building or new offices for the Central government, but building public amenities like new toilet blocks, parking spaces, pedestrian underpasses, as per news reports.
The Centre also argued that contrary to the claims of the petitioners, there was a medical facility at the site and that workers had access to such a facility. But according to a recent Scroll.in report, three workers at the Central Vista site have contracted Covid-19 and some have also complained of cramped living space and late wages. A 50-year-old construction supervisor who contracted Covid-19 in the last week of April, recovered mid-May. On May 19, he returned to the construction site but told Scroll.in that he still felt weak. “I get breathless even if I walk ten steps to the bathroom,” he was quoted saying.
The Central Vista was greenlighted by the Supreme Court in January this year by a 2:1 decision, with Justice Sanjiv Khanna’s dissent. It envisages an entire revamp of the Parliament building that is to be constructed by August 2022, when the country will be celebrating its 75th Independence Day. The project also covers the three-km stretch from Rashtrapati Bhavan to India Gate in Lutyens’ Delhi.
Related:
How is the Central Vista Project an essential service?
SC greenlights Central Vista project, decision split 2:1
Why did J. Sanjiv Khanna dissent from the Central Vista majority judgment?