HC raps HP govt on illegal buildings, encroachment

Calls state ‘mute spectator’ that lets people raise such buildings, directs officials to register cases against encroachers in 3 months

SHIMLA: The Himachal Pradesh high court on Tuesday came down heavily on the state government for its move to regularise unauthorised constructions in the state. The court also pulled up the state for not making efforts to evict forest land encroachment.

The high court judgement has come close on the heel of the state assembly passing the bill to regularise unauthorised constriction in the state.

A division bench of justice Rajiv Sharma and justice Sureshwar Singh Thakur, while convicting a forest guard for tree felling, observed that the state government should not regularise the unauthorised construction and also the encroachments, that too on forest land. “It is expected from the state to maintain rule of law and action of the state to regularise unauthorised construction or encroachment is suggestive of non-governance,” the 34-pages court judgement read.

The bench observed that the unauthorised constructions have not been raised overnight. “The government machinery was a mute spectator by letting people raise the constructions and also encroach upon the government land,” the judgement read. It also said permitting such constrictions under the nose of authority and later regularising those amounts to failure of constitutional machinery.

“The state machinery has adopted ostrich like attitude. Honest persons are at the receiving end and those who have raised unauthorised construction are being encouraged to break the law. This attitude also violates the human rights of honest citizens, who have raised their construction in accordance with the law,” the judgement read. It also observed that thousands of building are being regularised that are not even structurally safe.

“The over indulgence by the state to dishonest persons may ultimately lead to anarchy and will also destroy the democratic polity,” it added.

ED TOLD TO FILE CASES AGAINST ENCROACHERS

The HC further directed the director, enforcement directorate and Union minister of finance to register cases against those persons who have encroached upon forest land and have planted fruit bearing trees and amassed “ill-gotten” money and also engaged in money laundering within three months.

The court also termed the investigation in encroachment on forest land defective. It observed that the state has not made efforts to prevent and evict persons who have encroached upon the forest land. “The government is directed to initiate process to identify the encroachments over the forest land and persons who have planted fruit bearing trees and to take necessary steps for their eviction,” the court ruled.

The bench has ordered the state to provide necessary details of persons who have encroached upon more than 10 bighas of forest land and have also indulged in money laundering within four weeks to the ED.

VB TOLD TO VERIFY PROPERTIES OF OFFICERS

The high court has directed the state vigilance bureau to carry out periodical verification of movable and immovable properties of the revenue officials or forest officers posted, more particularly, in districts Mandi, Shimla, Chamba and Sirmaur, where the encroachment on forest land is rampant, every six months.

SAYS PERMITTING SUCH CONSTRUCTIONS UNDER THE NOSE OF AUTHORITY, AND LATER REGULARISING IT AMOUNTS TO CONSTITUTIONAL MACHINERY’S FAILURE