INDIA BUSINESS WORLD - JULY 2006
THE MONTH THAT WAS...

ANTI-DEMOLITION LAW WILL STAND: EXPERTS

EVEN as the Supreme Court has rapped the government over its moratorium on demolition, worried traders and fidgety politicians are of the view that the legislation is well within the purview of law. The government too is sure that the apex court's recent observation on the validity of the bill would not impede the operations of the law.

Senior government officials said the Centre would file its reply with the court and wait for the judgement passed by Parliament in May. The law was challenged in the Supreme Court which called it “wholly invalid and void.” It gave the government one week's time to file its reply to the petitions challenging the legislation and fixed July 31 as the date for a further hearing. “We are confident about the legal competence of Parliament that passed the law,” the officials added.

 “The legislation was well within the framework of the constitution and it's the primary duty of the government to help its citizens earn their livelihood,' said Delhi Pradesh Congress Chief Ram Babu Sharma. ‘We are sure that the urban development ministry will give a satisfactory reply to the apex court and clear all doubts about the legislation,” Mr Sharma said. ‘There is a sense of apprehension among the community of 5000 traders after the apex court observed that the legislation is wholly invalid. It's a matter of our livelihood and the government now should give satisfactory answers to the court,' said Praveen Khandelwal, secretary general of the Confederation of All India Traders.

The Supreme Court Monday criticised the central government for enacting the Delhi Laws (Special Provisions) Act that sought to halt demolition and sealing of premises of commercial establishments operating from residential areas in the national capital. The Act does not apply to any unauthorised construction started or continued on or after January 1, 2006 . This means urban local bodies have the authority to carry out punitive measures and demolition action against unauthorised construction started after this date. Similarly, any commercial activity started on residential plots after January 1, 2006 also faces action.