15th-century medieval monument razed to build Delhi Jal Board CEO’s mansion, notice sent

The built-up area of the new house that has replaced the monument is 700 sqm which, according to the show cause notice, “exceeds even the prescribed area of 403 sqm of a type VIII quarter by almost 300 sqm”.

Rai was entitled to a Type V government housing.

The monument described by the ASI as a ‘mahal’.

The dimensions of the entire plot where the house is constructed is about 5,500 sqm.

According to the notice, nearly Rs 4 crore has been spent on the project.

The Department of Archaeology, which comes under the Delhi government’s Art, Culture and Language Department and has the mandate to protect and conserve ancient monuments of local importance, had visited the site in December 2020.

In January 2021, the department wrote to the DJB to hand over possession of the monument for “immediate attention” and conservation.

A joint inspection by officials from the Department of Archaeology and DJB was carried out in January this year, and a report was submitted which said that in December 2020, the department officials found “two structures, one of which appeared to be a gateway and another one the main building of the said Mahal…”

However, during the January 2023 visit, the inspection team “found that only one structure i.e. gateway could be identified on the site”.

The Vigilance department, in its notice, said, “The Mahal of Pathan period was allegedly demolished as per the directions of Udit Prakash Rai, CEO (DJB) with the help of DJB engineers”.

The notice also stated that Rai was responsible for: “Demolition of part of the entire structure…” and he was “well aware of the fact that there exists a historical monument”.

Rai has been asked to reply to the notice in two weeks.

He did not respond to phone calls or text messages from The Indian Express for comment.

Water Minister Saurabh Bharadwaj too did not respond to calls or messages.

On Wednesday, when The Indian Express visited the house constructed on the site of the monument, Rai’s wife was present there. She did not wish to be named in this report and said, “These are only allegations. There were old DJB quarters here, which have been renovated. This is not our personal house. If we leave, the structure will not come back. We are fighting against the issue. The monument was not inside the boundary. A monument still exists on the other side of the boundary. We have placed shuttering alongside the boundary to keep out wild animals and thieves.”