Ridge reserved forest,clear encroachment: HC

The areas that now face demolition action include houses in Freedom Fighters Colony,and other unauthorised constructions that have come up in the last 30 years.

A division bench of Justices Pradeep Nandarajog and S P Garg also noted that the Supreme Court had to pass judicial orders for preserving the forest land,even though the 1954 Delhi Land Reforms Act had empowered the authorities to notify the land as ‘reserved forest’ when there were no residential construction here.

“It remained an unfortunate situation that the inefficient bureaucrat did not declare as aforesaid till the Supreme Court had to needle the inefficient bureaucrat to comply with the law,” said Justice Nandarajog,rejecting a bunch of petitions that challenged a previous court order passed by a single-judge bench in March.

The single-judge had upheld the government’s notification declaring the area as ‘reserved forest’,disallowing any commercial or residential activities on it.

“Afforestation,with the long term perspective of preserving the environment necessary for the very existence of mankind,(must supersede) deforestation,with a short time perspective to use the uncultivated land for residential and commercial purposes,” the court said.

The petitions against the single-bench order were moved by the Freedom Fighters’ Social Welfare Association,Shree Hazur Baba Sadhu Singhji Maharaja Trust and a few other residents. The petitioners said the Supreme Court had directed that only the “uncultivated gaon sabha land”,but while there was no cultivation on their land,it was being used for residential purposes and hence could not be declared ‘reserved forest’.

The residents also based their claim on the Delhi government’s 2008 policy decision pertaining to regularisation of unauthorised colonies in the city.

This contention,however,was opposed by standing counsel for the government Zubeda Begum,who said the policy specifically excluded such unauthorised colonies or part of colonies or habitations comprised in notified or reserved forest area and hence,no relief could be claimed by them.

Justice Nandarajog found favour with the argument and noted that the residents could not seek refuge under the premise that they had developed the land for residential purposes. The court said that the single-judge bench had rightly upheld the notification of the government.