The Supreme Court had on August 31, 2021, ordered the demolition of the Supertech twin towers for violating building norms in "collusion” with Noida officials. (Express photo by Gajendra Yadav)The Supreme Court on Tuesday extended the time for the demolition of the illegally constructed 40-storey Emerald Court twin tower project of real estate developer Supertech Ltd in Noida (New Okhla Industrial Development Authority) till August 28.
A bench presided by Justice D Y Chandrachud allowed the request by Edifice Engineering which was entrusted with the contract for demolition. The previous deadline set for the demolition was May 22.
On Tuesday, the counsel appearing for the engineering firm sought an extension of time citing safety issues. Initially, the bench, also comprising Justice P S Narasimha, was not inclined to entertain the request for three months and remarked, “This is nothing but an attempt to delay”.
However, Amicus Curiae advocate Gaurav Aggarwal was of the opinion that if the question was one of safety, then the extension may be granted. He also suggested that a status report be called forth. The bench noted that the director of the Central Building Research Institute had also, in a communication dated May 11, indicated that it should be deferred.
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Accepting the request, the bench directed that the Noida Authority also file a status report before the next date of hearing.
The Supreme Court had on August 31, 2021, ordered the demolition of the Supertech twin towers for violating building norms in “collusion” with Noida officials. The top court held that the illegal construction has to be dealt with strictly to ensure compliance with the rule of law. In February, the Noida Authority had informed the top court that the demolition work had started and will be completed by May 22, 2022.
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