The Supreme Court on Monday ordered Arvind Kejriwal”s Aam Aadmi Party to vacate their current headquarters, situated on a plot designated for the High Court. The party has been granted time until June 15th to comply. The top court, emphasizing the encroachment issue, set the deadline in view of the upcoming Lok Sabha elections.
The party has been asked to seek alternate land from the Centre”s Land and Development Office. “We would request the L&DO to process the application and communicate its decision within a period of four weeks,” stated the bench comprising Chief Justice DY Chandrachud and Justices JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra.
In February, the court had noted AAP”s encroachment on the land, originally designated for the expansion of the Delhi High Court. This matter arose during discussions on nationwide judicial infrastructure.
Following a court directive, a meeting took place on February 15, where the state government pledged to vacate the plot within two months, provided an alternative site was provided. However, progress stalled.
Today, the judges expressed concern over this delay. Chief Justice DY Chandrachud emphasised the importance of upholding the law. “How can any political party sit on it? All encroachments will be removed… The High Court should be given possession of the land, which can be used for the public and citizens,” stated the Chief Justice.
The top court instructed the Chief Secretary, PWD Secretary, and Finance Secretary of the Delhi Government to convene a meeting with the High Court Registrar General to resolve all outstanding issues before the next hearing.
Solicitor General Tushar Mehta questioned the necessity of providing alternate land to AAP. “If they want to evacuate then let them evacuate. What is this condition?” he said.
The allocation, he added, was made to the government and it gave it to the party. “But they have to evacuate… How can they hold the Supreme Court and the High Court at ransom?” he added.
According to a report by Bar and Bench, the AAP contended that its party office near the Rouse Avenue court should not be considered an encroachment, as it was assigned to them long before it was earmarked for the court”s expansion.
Senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi, representing AAP, stated that the land in question had been utilized by the National Capital Territory (NCT) between 1993 and 2015, prior to being allocated to AAP.
highlighted the party”s status as one of the six national parties, suggesting entitlement to land. However, the Chief Justice told Singhvi, “You should not appear in this case, you cannot oppose the ground for Delhi High Court… You are using our good offices to get the plot… How can we allow this?”
