In an affidavit filed before the court, the Delhi Government had submitted a list of guidelines as a pre-condition for approval of unauthorised colonies. These include the imposition of development charges at the rate of Rs 514 per sq ft, facilities for providing civic amenities and that the colonies should have come up before March 31, 1993.

After stating that the state government had decided to stick to the cut-off date of March 31, 1993, as recommended by a high-powered committee appointed by the court, counsel for the government Geeta Luthra said that the court should give its immediate assent so that part of the long-pending problem could be solved.

A division bench comprising Justices Y.K.Sabharwal and K.S.Gupta, however, said that it would go through the pros and cons of the guidelines before issuing an order. Among other details, the court asked for the number of unauthorised colonies which would be eliminated from the process of regularisation because of non-fulfillment of guidelines.

The bench also asked the counsel to explain why the government was pursuing this matter with such urgency. The court directed that in the composite proposal the central and Delhi governments should clarify their stand on the fate of unauthorised colonies. It further told the governments to state how they would deal with the colonies on private land which had come up after March 31, 1998. The bench added that it would be necessary to know the governments' policy with respect to colonies other than those on private land, like those on government and gram sabha land.

The division bench stated that on August 17, Delhi Chief Minister Sahib Singh Verma had, in connection with the regularisation of colonies on government land and those not to be regularised, assured the court that a positive decision would be taken in one-and-a-half months and that the decision would be stated before it on the next date of hearing.

The government counsel submitted that it would be easy for the court to take a decision on the acceptability of guidelines for the regularisation of colonies on private land as only a few conditions had been imposed in this case. The case was different with respect to colonies on government or other types of land as a number of conditions had to be gone through before taking a final decision, Luthra added.