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Chandigarh: The long battle behind SC’s ruling on heritage status
The RWA’s long legal battle finally saw the light of day after the Supreme Court (SC) on Tuesday ruled that the first 30 sectors of Chandigarh carried the heritage status of Le Corbusier zone and, therefore, conversion of residential houses into floor-wise apartments cannot be permitted in these sectors
Colonel Kulwinder Singh (retired) 76, president of the Residents’ Welfare Association (RWA), Sector 10, said that the motive behind the years long legal battle was to save the character of City Beautiful as it was envisaged by Le Corbusier, the creator of Chandigarh.
The RWA’s long legal battle finally saw the light of day after the Supreme Court on Tuesday ruled that the first 30 sectors of Chandigarh carried the heritage status of Le Corbusier zone and, therefore, conversion of residential houses into floor-wise apartments cannot be permitted in these sectors.
In 2016, the Sector 10 RWA had first approached the Punjab and Haryana high court seeking an order to the Chandigarh administration to not permit utilisation of residential plots as apartments. Kulwinder Singh, who has been living in Chandigarh since 1954, said that he has seen the city grow since childhood and has an affinity towards its character.
Speaking about what triggered them to approach the court, he said, “Unfortunately, for the last few years because of certain commercial reasons, people started converting the residential houses into apartments, thereby increasing population density,” he said, adding that the infrastructure was not designed to meet that kind of population density which was spoiling the very concept of Chandigarh.
In 2022, the Punjab and Haryana high court had ruled that residential plots in Chandigarh can have multiple shareholders, even outside the family. It was this order that was challenged by the RWA. He said, “We are happy that this ruling has come to ensure that the character of Chandigarh as envisaged by Le Corbusier and experienced by our forefathers would be protected and our coming generation would continue to enjoy the same.”
ML Sarin, secretary general, Sarin Memorial Legal Aid foundation, which was also a party in the case, said that it was the concept of Le Corbusier that led them to the fight for years. Sarin, who has been living in Chandigarh since January 1955, said, “Le Corbusier, the creator of Chandigarh, was a very farsighted person and in his edict of Chandigarh which he has laid down he said that the seed of the city is well sown and It is for the citizens to see to it that the tree flourishes.”
“If Corbusier relies on the citizens, we are the ones who have to save it. That is how a handful of people got together and took up the issue,” he said, adding that when the RWA of sector 10 filed the writ petition in the high court their foundation also became a party and supported them.
He said that earlier, they had also opposed the Chandigarh Apartment rules notified by the administration in 2001. As per the rules, which were repealed in 2007, single residential units could be subdivided into apartments.
