The Bombay High Court decision today deals a blow to the state government. (Archive)
Mumbai:
In a setback for the Uddhav Thackeray government, the Bombay High Court temporarily halted construction of a Mumbai subway car shed project at its new site.
In October, the chief minister had said that the controversial car shed for the Metrorail project would move to Kanjurmag from Aarey, a vast swath of green with around five lakhs of trees and home to a wide variety of animals and birds. The project was modified due to protests that broke out after the previous government’s decision, led by BJP’s Devendra Fadnavis, about logging in the Aarey neighborhood.
However, the High Court today suspended construction on the new site and asked the government led by Shiv Sena to await its orders.
The decision was made amid a dispute between the state and the center over ownership of the new site. In a petition filed in the Superior Court, the center challenged the project change, emphasizing that the land belonged to its salt department.
A bank in the division of Chief Justice Dipankar Datta and Judge GS Kulkarni today admitted the Union Government’s request for a final hearing in February, adding that the collector’s October 1 order, allocating the land for building the car shed, has to go.
Senior Deputy Minister Ajit Pawar commented on the High Court decision saying: “The order will be reviewed, and after that any work that is necessary … will start.”
Hon’ble HC has granted a stay to Kanjurmarg’s work. We await the detailed written order to decide the future course of action.
This land is crucial for metro lines 6, 4 and 14 in addition to 3 as it will save almost ₹ 5.5 billion rupees from the government and will be a 1 million rupee nodal point for citizens.– Aaditya Thackeray (@AUThackeray) December 16, 2020
In a tweet, Maharashtra Environment Minister Aaditya Thackeray wrote: “The Honorable HC granted a suspension to the work of Kanjurmarg. We await the detailed written order to decide the future course of action. This terrain is crucial for the lines. 6, 4 and 14 of the subway “. plus 3, as it will save nearly Rs 5.5 billion rupees from the government and will be a nodal point for 1 crore of citizens (sic). “
Yesterday, Uddhav Thackeray had commented on the issue in the state assembly, saying: “Politics must not stand in the way of the development of the city. More than property, what is important is how the project will bring benefits to the people.”
Last year, a lot of controversy erupted after the decision of the BJP-led Maharashtra government to cut down trees in Aarey, often referred to as Mumbai ‘s last “green lung”. The activists fiercely opposed the decision to cut down 2,700 trees to build the shed.
In October, Uddhav Thackeray ordered the withdrawal of all police cases filed against the Aarey protesters, a move that was announced in December last year also after Thackeray took office.
After her father announced the project change, Aaditya Thackeray, who campaigned to save the trees, tweeted, “Aarey saved!”
A 102-acre government land in Kanjurmarg was turned over to MMRDA (Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) on October 6. Commissioner RA Rajeev had informed the state cabinet that the cost of changing the project would be around of Rs 200 crore, news agency ANI reported.
(With inputs from PTI, ANI)
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