'Don't take us for granted': Supreme Court pulls up Delhi govt over water shortage
Delhi water shortage: The Delhi government received a warning by the Supreme Court on Monday for failing to rectify defects in its plea seeking a direction to Haryana to release the surplus water provided by Himachal Pradesh to ease the city's water crisis. The court stated, "Do not take us for granted."
A vacation bench comprising Justice Prashant Kumar Mishra and Justice Prasanna B Varale noticed that affidavits are not being accepted in the registry due to a fault in the Delhi government's plea.
"Why have you not cured the defect? We will dismiss the petition. On the last date also this was pointed out and you did not remove the defect. Don't take the court proceedings for granted, however important your case may be," the top court said.
"Never take us for granted. Filings are not being accepted. You straightaway hand over a series of documents in court and then you say you are suffering a deficit of water and pass an order today itself. You are raising all grounds of urgency and sitting leisurely. Let everything come on record. We will take it the day after tomorrow," it added and adjourned the matter to June 12.
The Supreme Court stated that it wants to peruse the files before hearing the case because there have been so many reports in the newspapers.
"If we don't read the files at our residential office we will be impressed by whatever the newspapers are reporting. That is not good for any of the parties," it added.
Senior attorney Shyam Divan, representing Haryana, began by submitting the state government's reply. The Supreme Court questioned Divan as to why he filed the reply now. Divan responded that because the defects in the Delhi government's appeal had not been corrected, the registry did not allow pre-filing of the reply.
The top court then chastised the Delhi government. The attorney for the Delhi government stated that the defects had been removed.
The extreme shortage of drinking water has become an "existential problem" in Delhi, according to the Supreme Court, which asked the Himachal Pradesh government to deliver 137 cusecs of extra water to the national capital on Friday and Haryana to expedite its flow.
- PTC NEWS
