Sept 18: The Centre has decided to put on hold the sealing drive in the Capital, it conveyed to the Supreme Court that it has issued a fresh ordinance to stop the sealing drive till Dec 2008.
The ordinance was titled as "The National Capital Territory of Delhi Laws (Special Provisions) Second Ordinance, 2007"; under this the resistance would continue till December 31, 2008.
Counsel for the MCD, Sanjiv Sen, told that the Ordinance has got Presidential assent and will remain till December 2008.
The apex court bench of justices Arjit Pasayat, C K Thakker and L S Penta were dealing with this case.
The ordinance give power to the centre to take all possible measure for finalising norms, policies and strategies to deal with the problem of encroachment.
Earlier the Centre’s plea of not extending sealing drive to unauthorized colonies on the basis it was constituted in different category was rejected by the Apex Court bench. The bench said that rules of closing commercial activity in residential areas of regular colonies were very much valid for illegal colonies as well.
School, dispensaries, religious places, godowns, slum dwellers & jhuggi-jhopri clusters, Illegal constructions and squatting by hawkers and urban street vendors, constructions violating norms in illegal colonies and village abadi areas, existing farmhouses involving construction beyond permissible building limits will be protected under the umbrella of this ordinance.
This protection is given till December 2008, till government prepares a detailed guideline in accordance with Masterplan Delhi 2021.
The Supreme Court’s earlier directed that all commercial activities in these unauthorised colonies would cease after three weeks. Only shops falling in 24 categories, having a maximum area of not more than 20 sq mt was exempted from sealing.
This Ordinance showed the confrontation between legislation and judiciary.
The Municipal Corporation of Delhi started the Delhi Sealing Drive in 2006 to seal a number of unauthorized colonies, school and shops. The whole Delhi opposed the sealing and several protest rallies were conducted through out Delhi. Later Supreme Court suspended the drive.
The Supreme Court warned the government several time by for improperly conducting the drive and the biasness it showed to close the unauthorized building in small villages and posh area.
This ordinance has come again at the crucial time before election. The problem has not come to an end but extended till December 2008.
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