Civic body dragging feet on mosque issue
4 Aug 2012 2:43 PM IST
North Corporation is most likely to miss the deadline to remove the illegal mosque erected at Subhash Park, believed to be where the Mughal-era Akbarabadi mosque existed. Apparently, police is not in a position to provide sufficient force in the first half of August.
Interestingly, the delay in implementation goes in favour of the corporation as after the expiry of 15 days, it would be the responsibility of Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) to remove the illegal structure.
Sources said the police is not ready to provide the sufficient force due to their pre-engagement in the first fortnight of August-high alert in the wake of Pune blast, Independence Day preparations, and movement of Baba Ramdev scheduled on 9 August are likely to keep them occupied.
Further, sources in the police said they don’t want to implement the order in the sacred month of Ramzan, as it could derail the communal harmony in the city.
‘I had written a letter to Police Commissioner of Delhi and other officers concerned on 30 July, asking to provide adequate force to implement the directions of Delhi High Court to remove the illegal mosque at Subhash Park,’ said P K Gupta, Commissioner of North Delhi Municipal Corporation (NDMC), the legal owner of the land. ‘We have not received any reply from the police so far,’ added Gupta. According to sources, police wants to avoid the implementation of the order in the first half of the August and will provide force only after Ramzan ends on 20 August.
‘The deadline of 15 days will now be counted from the date of High Court order,’ said P K Gupta. In its order on 30 July, the full bench of Delhi High Court of acting chief justice A K Sikri and Justices S K Kaul and Rajiv Shakdher had directed NDMC and ASI to implement their ‘decision to remove the illegal structure’ as per the notice issued by ASI to NDMC on 19 July.
In the letter, ASI had asked NDMC to remove the structure within 15 days, failing which the ASI will remove it at NDMC’s cost.
If the corporation misses the deadline, ASI will have to take responsibility to remove the structure or extend the deadline for the corporation. In its letter, ASI had declared the structure illegal under Ancient Monuments and Archeological Sites and Remains (Amendment and Validation) Act, 2010.
Under the Act any construction is prohibited within an 100 sqm area from protected monuments and digging or mining within 200 sqm area. The disputed structure is within the range from Red Fort and Sunheri Masjid, both protected monuments.
The agencies have two months to remove the structure when the case comes up for hearing in the last week of September.
Interestingly, the delay in implementation goes in favour of the corporation as after the expiry of 15 days, it would be the responsibility of Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) to remove the illegal structure.
Sources said the police is not ready to provide the sufficient force due to their pre-engagement in the first fortnight of August-high alert in the wake of Pune blast, Independence Day preparations, and movement of Baba Ramdev scheduled on 9 August are likely to keep them occupied.
Further, sources in the police said they don’t want to implement the order in the sacred month of Ramzan, as it could derail the communal harmony in the city.
‘I had written a letter to Police Commissioner of Delhi and other officers concerned on 30 July, asking to provide adequate force to implement the directions of Delhi High Court to remove the illegal mosque at Subhash Park,’ said P K Gupta, Commissioner of North Delhi Municipal Corporation (NDMC), the legal owner of the land. ‘We have not received any reply from the police so far,’ added Gupta. According to sources, police wants to avoid the implementation of the order in the first half of the August and will provide force only after Ramzan ends on 20 August.
‘The deadline of 15 days will now be counted from the date of High Court order,’ said P K Gupta. In its order on 30 July, the full bench of Delhi High Court of acting chief justice A K Sikri and Justices S K Kaul and Rajiv Shakdher had directed NDMC and ASI to implement their ‘decision to remove the illegal structure’ as per the notice issued by ASI to NDMC on 19 July.
In the letter, ASI had asked NDMC to remove the structure within 15 days, failing which the ASI will remove it at NDMC’s cost.
If the corporation misses the deadline, ASI will have to take responsibility to remove the structure or extend the deadline for the corporation. In its letter, ASI had declared the structure illegal under Ancient Monuments and Archeological Sites and Remains (Amendment and Validation) Act, 2010.
Under the Act any construction is prohibited within an 100 sqm area from protected monuments and digging or mining within 200 sqm area. The disputed structure is within the range from Red Fort and Sunheri Masjid, both protected monuments.
The agencies have two months to remove the structure when the case comes up for hearing in the last week of September.
Next Story
