Supreme Court Directs Demolition Of Illegal Structures On Public Land In Okhla Village, Delhi

The Supreme Court on Wednesday (May 8) ordered the Delhi Development Authority and Delhi government to demolish unauthorised structures spread over more than 4 bighas of public land in Khasra No. 279 in Okhla Village, Delhi within 3 months in accordance with law.A bench of Justice Abhay S. Oka and Justice Ujjal Bhuyan passed the order while hearing a contempt plea regarding the violation of its 2018 directions on unauthorised construction and encroachment on public lands in Delhi.The Court added that concerned persons must be served a 15-day notice before any demolition is carried out, and persons who receive demolition notices are free to take legal steps in accordance with law.“When we say due process of law we make it clear that 15 days advance notice shall be served on all concerned persons before taking action of demolition. Both DDA and state government to file compliance affidavits within 3 months. Those occupiers who are aggrieved with the notices of demolition are free to adopt proceedings in accordance with law”, the Court said.In the 2018 order in MC Mehta v. Union of India, the Court had found that unauthorised construction was rampant in public lands and unauthorised colonies in Delhi. The Court had observed that construction norms were not being applied to these areas, which led to unauthorised colonies being treated more favourably than authorised ones. The Court had directed a complete halt on construction activities in unauthorised colonies and on public land and had formed a Task Force to monitor compliance.The current contempt plea was filed in relation to encroachment and unauthorised occupation of land at Khasra No. 279, Okhla Village. The DDA, in its affidavit dated March 15, 2025, stated that it could not proceed with demolition as it had not received possession of the land. It sought directions to the Land Acquisition Collector/Land and Building Department to hand over an area of 3 bighas and 8 biswas. However, on March 21, 2025, the Court observed that the affidavit did not explain why demolition could not proceed even without possession and directed the Vice-Chairman of the DDA to file a personal affidavit explaining the failure to demolish illegal structures on public land in Okhla.On April 17, 2025, the Court noted that the affidavit filed by Vijay Kumar Singh, Vice-Chairman of the DDA, stated that the DDA could not act unless the land was handed over to it.In light of this, the Court on Wednesday directed DDA to remove illegal structures from the area of which it has, and the state government to remove illegal structures from the rest of the area.The Court noted that the demarcated area of Khasra No. 279 measures 34 bighas and 8 biswas. Out of this, 13 bighas and 14 biswas are vacant, and no action is required. Another portion measuring 11 bighas and 11 biswas was stated to fall within the boundary of the Uttar Pradesh Irrigation Department, and hence, no action was deemed necessary.The Court observed that what remained was illegal construction over an area of 9 bighas and 3 biswas. It recorded that the Delhi Development Authority (DDA) is in possession of 5 bighas and 15 biswas of this area. Out of this, 3 bighas and 5 biswas fall under the scope of the National Capital Territory of Delhi (Recognition of Property Rights of Residents in Unauthorised Colonies) Regulations, 2019, commonly referred to as the PM-UDAY scheme.The remaining area of 2 bighas and 10 biswas, which falls outside the purview of the PM-UDAY scheme, has been directed to be cleared. The Court ordered the DDA to proceed with the demolition of unauthorised structures in this area in accordance with law.As regards the remaining portion of 3 bighas and 8 biswas of which DDA does not have possession, the Court recorded that 1 bigha and 8 biswas out of this falls under the PM-UDAY scheme, while the remaining land lies outside its purview. For the portion not covered by the PM-UDAY scheme, the Court directed the state government to initiate demolition proceedings in accordance with law. “We have issued the direction to the state government as possession of 2 bighas has not been handed over to DDA”, the Court said.The petitioner's counsel stated that the petitioner did not wish to pursue the contempt petition any further. Therefore, the Court decided to continue the matter as a suo motu petition and not as one filed by the petitioner. The Court also directed that the name of the petitioner must not be mentioned in any notice issued by the DDA or the state government.Click Here To Read/Download Order

Supreme Court Directs Demolition Of Illegal Structures On Public Land In Okhla Village, Delhi

Amisha Shrivastava

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