E-Paper
SC notice to MCD in public school sealing case
The Monitoring Committee and the MCD are supposed to file status reports before the apex court by Monday, reports Satya Prakash.
The Supreme Court has asked its Monitoring Committee and the Municipal Corporation of Delhi to file reports about Vanasthali Public School in East Delhi, which was sealed on the ground that it was allegedly built on encroached land.
A Bench headed by Chief Justice of India YK Sabharwal on Wednesday issued an order to this effect after the matter was mentioned before the court by senior counsel Mukul Rohtagi on behalf of the school.
The Monitoring Committee and the MCD are supposed to file status reports before the apex court by Monday giving details of the circumstances leading to the sealing of the school. The court will hear the matter on Tuesday.
Rohtagi claimed that the school was on a private land and the allegation about encroachment was not correct and therefore it should be de-sealed.
On the other hand, MCD counsel Sanjiv Sen contended that the sealing was done in accordance with the court orders passed on March 24 and September 29 as also the Monitoring Committee's 4th report. He pointed out that the Monitoring Committee had issued written orders on November 30 to seal the school premises irrespective of any orders passed by any other court.
Sen further said that even DDA records showed that the school was built on public land and, therefore, its sealing was completely justified.
In fact, the Delhi High Court and the Monitoring Committee have been at loggerheads over the sealing of this school in Madhu Vihar area of East Delhi.
Digambar Jain Society that owns the school had approached the High Court seeking initiation of contempt proceedings against the MCD for having sealed it ignoring a stay order passed by the High Court on November 29.
Justice Ravindra Bhatt had sought an explanation from the civic body as to why it overruled the stay order on their own. The High Court had also given liberty to the petitioner society to go to the Supreme Court for a clarification.
