BREAKING : Delhi High Court Reserves Judgment On Plea To Suspend Central Vista Project Work Amid COVID

A Division Bench pf Chief Justice DN Patel and Justice Jyoti Singh of the Delhi High Court today reserved judgment in a plea seeking temporary suspension of work on Central Vista Redevelopment Project in light of second wave of Covid-19. The Bench heard Senior Advocate Siddharth Luthra appearing for the Petitioners, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta for the Centre and Senior Advocate Maninder Singh appearing for Shapoorji Pallonji Group. Delete BREAKING: Delhi High Court reserves its judgement in plea seeking temporary suspension of work on Central Vista Redevelopment Project in light of Covid-19. The Bench of Chief Justice DN Patel and Justice Jyoti Singh heard detailed arguments in the matter today. #CentralVista— Live Law (@LiveLawIndia) May 17, 2021 Right to life paramount: Sr. Adv Siddharth Luthra Senior Advocate Siddharth Luthra appearing for the Petitioners pleaded that right to life and health is of paramount significance and hence, the project may be halted in view of rising number of Covid-19 cases. He submitted that the authorities have not bothered to respond as to why the Central Vista project has been called an 'essential service' during the pandemic. "What we are concerned with is life and health of people at site and construction workers, and of people of Delhi," he said. He submitted that about 400 workers are being ferried from Sarai Kale Khan to the construction site in buses. "There were 180 buses as per reports which hasn't been refuted and 400 workers were being taken daily, excluding the guards, security etc.," he pointed out. He stated that there is no document on record to indicate the Government's willingness to make on site accommodations and Covid compliant facilities at the site, as they have claimed. He pointed out the photographs and stated that there are no beds, empty tents have been shown. Further, video report indicate that 7 persons are shoved into one room. "There aren't going to be just these workers on site, there'll be other workers as well who will go back to their families. What about their families? What about all of us?" he appealed to the Bench. Labelling Central Vista as the 'Central Fortress of Death', Luthra further pointed out that the project is now completely off access and it is difficult to determine if the steps, so assured by the Centre, have actually been taken. There is no publicly available material."The central vista is no longer a central vista but should now be called Central Fortress of Death." Senior Adv Siddharth Luthra submits before Delhi High Court. #CentralVista #DelhiHighCourt https://t.co/bobkzzfRmy— Live Law (@LiveLawIndia) May 17, 2021 "They've said there's on site accommodation. Video report says 7 persons are shoved into one room. If there's on site accommodation, They'll have to make good the necessary protocols. Please look into these 12 project, the court can take suo moto cognisance", Luthra said. Centre's Response The Central Government has filed an affidavit before the High Court claiming that various Covid-19 compliant facilities have been provided for the workers at the site including provisions for their stay, testing, isolation and medical aid at the site. It has also said that the instant petition is "an abuse of process of law" and must be dismissed with costs. Solicitor General Tushar Mehta appearing for the Central Government assured the Court that the project is being undertaken in accordance with law and measures have been taken to check the health and wellbeing of individuals. "There's no denying that Right to health is part of fundamental rights, and government has to ensure that Health, wellbeing and safety is protected…The question is, your Lordships are custodian of fundamental rights of everyone…Will stopping the project really help the workers?" He alleged that the instant PIL is a façade, created to disguise the Central Vista Project that they always wanted to stop under one pretext or the other. "It is just an attempt to some kind of vanity in minds of some individuals that no we will stop this. Petitioners are not concerned with workers or life of citizens. Public interest is very selective in this particular case. They don't care about other workmen They don't care about what happens to citizens of Delhi through the other projects that have been going on!" Mehta said.The Solicitor General also took exception to the use of the word "Auschwitz" to compare the accommodation arrangements made for the workers as concentration camps."An expression Auschwitz was used during submissions which means concentration camps in Germany. How can he say that?", the SG said. The law officer of the Union said that the court cannot be used as a platform for such attacks.Luthra objects to aspersions cast on Petitioners Taking exception to Centre's remarks, Luthra said that it has been portrayed as if Petitioners are enemies, when...

BREAKING : Delhi High Court Reserves Judgment On Plea To Suspend Central Vista Project Work Amid COVID

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Delhi High Court Reserves Judgment On Plea To Suspend Central Vista Project Work Amid COVID

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