Cong’s Delhi govt bulldozes court order, moves to OK illegal buildings

Following the footsteps of the Congress-led government in Maharashtra, Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit has asked for a Central ordinanc...

Following the footsteps of the Congress-led government in Maharashtra, Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit has asked for a Central ordinance “on the lines of Ulhasnagar” to regularize illegal buildings in the Capital’s residential colonies.

The move comes even as the Delhi High Court is monitoring building by-law violations by top politicians of the city, including leaders of the Congress and BJP.

Proposing an ordinance, Dikshit sent a letter to Union Urban Development Minister Jaipal Reddy last Friday and urged the Centre to take a decision at the earliest. Copies of the letter were also marked to Home Minister Shivraj Patil and Delhi’s Lt Governor B L Joshi.

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Confirming this to The Indian Express this evening, Dikshit said: “We want this period of uncertainty to end. There is an atmosphere of panic among the citizens in the Capital, as they are scared of bulldozers. So, we proposed an ordinance to be brought by the Centre to give relief to the people.”

“The residences of people should be spared, they should not be touched. And if people have begun commercial activities in the colonies, they should also be given some relief, except in case of blatant violations,” she said.

Sources said the letter of request for an ordinance has been sent along with a proposed ordinance as well.

The draft ordinance was vetted by Delhi government’s Law department before sending it. ‘‘Our officers were studying the Ulhasnagar ordinance for last few weeks, before we proposed one,” she said.

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The ordinance, she said, is the “need of the hour” since Delhi is waiting for a new Master Plan and a new set of building bye-laws. “Delhi’s modern face cannot be governed by a set of antique laws,” Dikshit reasoned.

The Master Plan of Delhi-2021 and the building by-laws—which will have different set of laws depending on the type of area—are expected to come in about ‘‘six months’ time”, she said.

“Moreover, the process of regularization of over 1,400 colonies is also underway. So, during this interim period, an ordinance appears to be the best solution.”

Sources said the draft ordinance aims to provide “relief to residential areas” and allows extra coverage, extra floors and non-hazardous commercial use in these localities.

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The possibility of an ordinance was discussed in a cabinet meeting last Wednesday as the Delhi municipal corporation’s demolition drive was underway.

Shubhajit Roy

Shubhajit Roy, Diplomatic Editor at The Indian Express, has been a journalist for more than 25 years now. Roy joined The Indian Express in October 2003 and has been reporting on foreign affairs for more than 17 years now. Based in Delhi, he has also led the National government and political bureau at The Indian Express in Delhi — a team of reporters who cover the national government and politics for the newspaper. He has got the Ramnath Goenka Journalism award for Excellence in Journalism ‘2016. He got this award for his coverage of the Holey Bakery attack in Dhaka and its aftermath. He also got the IIMCAA Award for the Journalist of the Year, 2022, (Jury’s special mention) for his coverage of the fall of Kabul in August 2021 — he was one of the few Indian journalists in Kabul and the only mainstream newspaper to have covered the Taliban’s capture of power in mid-August, 2021. ... Read More

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