Apart from criticizing the civic authorities for the deaths of three civil service aspirants who drowned in the basement of a coaching center in Old Rajinder Nagar, the Delhi High Court unleashed its wrath on the center Human Resources Development Ministry on Wednesday.
Calling the MCD commissioner in the court, the honorable court ordered that all encroachment on drains in the area should be removed without delay.
The court questioned the kind of planning, saying, “What sort of planning is this? One day, the state suffers from a drought; the other, there is a flood.” He hinted at a possible central agency investigation.
The High Court also entertained a petition seeking a high-level investigation into the occurrence and Permissibility of operating coaching centers in an area considered a stronghold for the Union Public Service Commission.
Reflecting the political battle with the state’s AAP government, the court said such a tragedy was inevitable due to the society’s ‘culture of freebies’, which has led to poor tax realization. Another factor under consideration was the MCD’s financial situation, about which the court cited its inability to even pay salaries.
The court was dissatisfied with the investigation, saying that while a passerby faced arrest, no action was taken against MCD officials. The court de-emphasized the relevance of departments’ strict organizational structure or separation of powers, where explicit demarcation of tasks defined accountabilities.
The High Court guidelines focused on identifying an effective approach to compelling the authorities to take responsibility for the breach.
