SC pulls up trust restoring heritage structures at Delhi Golf Club for covering inscriptions with lime plaster

New DelhiThe Supreme Court on Wednesday pulled up the Aga Khan Trust over the conservation work of heritage structures located at the Delhi Golf Club, finding the lime plaster over the structures to be an “eyewash” and threatening to jail those responsible for compromising with the original design and inscriptions on the monument

New Delhi

New Delhi, Jan 10 (ANI): A view of the Supreme Court building, the apex judicial body of India, in New Delhi on Tuesday. (ANI Photo) (Sanjay Sharma)

The Supreme Court on Wednesday pulled up the Aga Khan Trust over the conservation work of heritage structures located at the Delhi Golf Club, finding the lime plaster over the structures to be an “eyewash” and threatening to jail those responsible for compromising with the original design and inscriptions on the monument.

Seeking an explanation from the Delhi Golf Club (DGC) in two weeks, the court also questioned the Centre for handing over prime land at Sunder Nursery to the Aga Khan Trust “on a platter,” allowing them to operate restaurants and earn money, as it sought a response from the government on how this was permissible for a private trust.

A bench of justices Ahsanuddin Amanullah and N Kotiswar Singh said, “Look at what they have done. There were inscriptions before. Now it is covered in white. Is it an eyewash or what? Whoever it is, we will put them to jail.”

The bench’s observations came in a petition filed by Delhi resident Rajeev Suri; the court is examining the preservation and restoration of all heritage sites in the Capital.

Senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi, appearing for DGC, pointed out that the restoration work at the site was conducted by the Aga Khan Trust. “I will take instructions and get back on the next date,” he said.

The bench said, “If this is how they are conserving, we will blacklist them. There was an intricate design on the monument. Now it’s gone. Do they think we are fools? We will expose them. They think they are sacrosanct.”

Posting the matter after two weeks, the court pulled up the Centre on the Aga Khan Trust being allowed to operate a commercial space at Delhi’s Sundar Nursery, near Nizamuddin. “The government has given almost 70 acres of the total 80-acre park to the Aga Khan Trust on a platter. It is shocking.”

Additional solicitor general (ASG) Aishwarya Bhati, appearing for the Centre and the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), agreed to take instructions in this regard. Appearing for ASI, she pointed out that the Lal Bangla I and II—centrally protected structures located inside the club—have been protected pursuant to the court order of May 27, enforcing the 100-metre prohibited zone around them. Besides, there are 10 other ancient structures situated within the DGC precincts which are not “protected monuments”.

The court-appointed team of commissioners, led by senior advocate Gopal Sankaranarayanan, submitted a report which confirmed that on a site visit, the 100-metre area around these two structures had been cleared. It stated that around the remaining 10 structures, a board had been placed, restricting public access. However, the team of commissioners, also comprising advocates Nipun Saxena and Vishal Sinha, pointed out that modalities needed to be worked for the future to allow the public to access these historical monuments.

Nine of the 10 structures are situated inside the club boundary and include an early Mughal tomb, Mir Taqi’s tomb, the Tomb of Syed Abid, Gateway and Barah Khamba of the Tughlaq era, among other similar historical structures.

Gumti of Shaikh Ali in focus

The court also examined the restoration work carried out at other heritage sites identified in Suri’s petition.

The commissioners informed the court that on a recent visit to the Gumti of Shaikh Ali—a historical monument that was being used by an association in Defence Colony—they found construction waste around the site and the green area around the monument was not developed despite a timeline proposed by the Delhi government.

The court gave a final opportunity for the departments concerned of the Delhi government and other agencies involved in the maintenance of the site to get their act together and show compliance by the next date of hearing. “If any single instance of lack of proper care in execution of the tender/works concerned is found, exemplary orders shall be passed by this court,” the bench said.

The court further directed the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) and the New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) to also elaborate the steps being taken to monitor the conservation exercise of heritage sites and ancient monuments in their respective areas.

In February this year, Suri had submitted a 2021 report by INTACH, documenting 1,100 notified heritage sites in Delhi, based on which the court sought responses from the ASI, Delhi government, MCD and NDMC, along with remedial steps to restore their pristine glory.