The Delhi High Court on Wednesday blasted the civic body over the deaths of three civil service aspirants who drowned in the basement of a coaching centre in Old Rajinder Nagar and summoned the MCD commissioner on Thursday.
A bench headed by Acting Chief Justice Manmohan directed the authorities to remove all encroachments on drains in Rajinder Nagar area by Friday while hinting at transferring the probe to a central agency.
"What kind of planning is this? One day you complain of drought and the next day there is a flood? Who sanctioned the building plan? Has he been hauled up? He must have got a double promotion. The MCD has become a joke," the court said.
The court was hearing a petition filed by an NGO seeking a probe by a high-level committee into the incident and an investigation into coaching institutes running illegally.
In an apparent swipe at the ruling AAP government, the court said such tragedies were bound to happen when there was no collection of taxes due to a "freebies culture".
"You want to have freebies culture, but don't want to collect taxes... this is bound to happen," the two-judge bench said.
The court said multi-storey buildings were being allowed to operate in the area, a popular UPSC coaching hub, but there was no proper drainage.
Noting the apathy of the civic bodies, the court said it was bankrupt and couldn't even pay salaries to its employees.
A primary probe has hinted that the drainage system in the area was heavily clogged with silt. On Wednesday, Delhi Minister Atishi said encroachment of the drainage area by coaching centres prevented the floodwater from receding.
Calling it a "strange probe", the High Court said no action was taken against MCD officials but a passerby who drove a car near Rau's IAS Study Circle coaching institute was arrested. The Delhi Police has also been added as a respondent in the case.
Police claimed that Manuj Kathuria, a businessman, drove his SUV through the flooded street in Old Rajinder Nagar, causing a wave of water that damaged the institute's gate and inundated the basement.
The court said there was a need for clear delineation of responsibilities among authorities. "We understand all stakeholders are responsible... This is a strategy where no person is held responsible. We have to find out where the jurisdiction of one authority ends and the responsibility of another begins," the court said.
The court will continue hearing the matter on Friday.
