SC pulls up Delhi govt for allowing DDA to illegally cut trees in Ridge area

A vacation bench of Justices Abhay S Oka and Ujjal Bhuyan also issued notice to the Delhi government through the Principal Secretary of the Environment and Forest Department.

"The Principal Secretary shall file an affidavit explaining how the government has permitted the felling of trees by exercising the powers of the Tree Authority under the Delhi Protection of Trees Act 1994. He will also explain why action was not taken against DDA notwithstanding the fact that the Forest Department of the Government was fully aware of gross violation by DDA," the bench ordered.

The bench took strong objection to the State Forest Department's notification issued to DDA as permission for the felling of trees.

The apex court questioned the government of Delhi as to how it could usurp the Tree Officer's powers of permitting the felling of trees in the Delhi Ridge and commented on the illegality of the Delhi government's encroachment on the powers of the Tree Authority.

"The State government has to answer many questions including the question as to how the government can usurp the power of the Tree Officer for granting permission," said the bench.

The top court was hearing a plea filed by Delhi resident Bindu Kapurea, alleging that trees were cut despite a March 4 apex court order denying permission to the DDA and the fact that the trees had been cut was suppressed from the court.

It further slammed the Delhi Development Authority (DDA) for not providing information regarding the visit of Lt Governor VK Saxena to the Ridge area where 1,100 trees were cut.

The bench observed that the DDA was protecting higher-ups and blaming subordinate officers and it was "absolute recklessness" on the part of the DDA that it could not find a simple document indicating LG's visit on February 3.

It said, "This is absolute recklessness on your part. You cannot find a simple document. Nothing has been done, and no meeting of the officers has been called. I hope that the vice-chairman is taking the matter seriously. We have all our doubts about the way things are done. We see that the first part of the email, which talks about the LG being visited, is correct. When the email says that LG has visited and ordered the cutting of trees, was it not the function of the DDA to look into it? The object of the committee is only to save and protect the higher-ups and blame the lower officers, like junior engineers or executive engineers."

Senior advocate Maninder Singh, appearing for the DDA vice-chairman, told the bench that DDA was trying to find the records and the intention was that no incorrect information was given to the bench.

The counsel told the apex court that LG had visited the hospital for central armed paramilitary forces and did not visit the site concerned.

The top court had earlier issued a notice of criminal contempt against DDA vice-chairman Subhasish Panda for allowing the large-scale felling of trees in the southern Ridge's Satbari area to build a road from Chhattarpur to South Asian University. (ANI)