Delhi High Court ordered top ASI, MCD and police officers to identify officials behind the lapse. The direction underscores institutional accountability for unchecked construction near a protected monument.
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Newdelhi,Oct 15, 2026 17:56 IST
The Delhi High Court has criticised the Archaeological Survey of India, the Municipal Corporation of Delhi and Delhi Police for failing to stop unauthorised construction within the regulated area of the protected Tomb of Raushanara, news agency Press Trust of India reported.
The court said the construction continued despite legal restrictions and an interim order barring further work. It directed the MCD commissioner, the special commissioner of Delhi Police and the ASI director to file personal affidavits naming the officials responsible for overlooking the violations.
A bench of Acting Chief Justice Nitin Wasudeo Sambre and Justice Sanjay Sharma said the authorities were free to take any action permitted under the law. However, it expected the senior-most officers of the MCD, ASI and Delhi Police to identify officials responsible for allowing the construction to continue without approval from the ASI.
In its October 9 order, the high court said the conduct of officials had enabled the property owner to complete the unauthorised construction in the regulated area of the Tomb of Raushanara and the Barahdari.
The court said that although the ASI had assured it that action would be taken, the agency had shown neither sensitivity nor determination. It also described the approach and attitude of MCD officials as “too callous”.
The court was hearing a petition filed by Manish Grover over unauthorised construction at a property on Singh Sahab Road in Delhi's Shakti Nagar, according to PTI.
The ASI had issued a stop-work notice to the property owner on February 15, 2024, after finding that construction was under way in the regulated area of the protected monument. A police complaint was also filed. On April 10, 2024, an ASI official wrote to the MCD and the deputy commissioner of police of the North West district, seeking immediate action to stop and remove the construction.
The court said the MCD had failed to act and issued a show-cause notice only on March 21, 2025, nearly a year after the alleged violation was brought to the authorities' attention.
On September 9, 2025, the high court had directed the station house officer concerned to ensure that the property owner was not allowed to carry out further construction. The order was not followed. “It is this conduct of the officials of the respondents which has led to the completion of the unauthorised construction,” the court said.
The property owner's counsel said permission from the MCD, the local planning authority, amounted to sufficient compliance. He said the owner had followed the advice of a planning architect who certified that the construction was within the permissible area and complied with the law, leading the MCD to grant permission. The counsel added that the owner's repeated attempts to secure a no-objection certificate from the ASI received no response, following which construction continued on the plot.
The high court has now sought personal affidavits from the senior officers of the ASI, MCD and Delhi Police, requiring them to identify those responsible for failing to prevent the unauthorised construction near the protected monument.
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