Social activist Lubna Sarwat has expressed consternation that the National Green Tribunal has chosen to adjourn the case pertaining to the Bam Rukn Ud-Dowla lake in Rajendranagar mandal of Ranga Reddy district, without hearing on the scheduled day.
Speaking at a press conference on Friday, Ms. Sarwath said the NGT has sent a wrong message to people by deciding to adjourn the case by three months in utter disregard of the encroachment which is going on in full swing.
She said the apex environment court has postponed the hearing citing another case filed in the High Court, about which an order was issued last year.
“Has it become a practice for the encroachers to cherry pick the benches and get a single bench order? Why didn’t the government file a review petition? And why didn’t the single judge think it worthy enough to order a detailed enquiry as suggested by the Irrigation department officials in their response?” Ms. Sarwath questioned.
The High Court order directed the government authorities, “not to interfere with the petitioner’s possession over the property” in Survey No. 42 situated at Bumruknudowla village in any manner, without following due process of law.
“Any order that may be passed shall be preceded by issuance of notice to the petitioner and after hearing all the stakeholders,” the orders read.
The petition in the High Court was filed with regard to six acres of land in survey number 42, which the plaintiff claimed was his own. While the said survey number partly falls outside the historic lake too, the Revenue authorities made no effort to identify the boundaries of the said land, and the police are refusing to take any action against the encroachment citing the court order. The lake has almost been filled up, a year after the order was pronounced.
An application to the NGT was made by Lubna Sarwath more than five years ago in 2018, complaining that the lake was being destroyed. Based on the orders by the NGT principal bench, a survey was undertaken in 2019, the photos of which were produced by Ms. Sarwath in a presentation.
The pictures showed Member of Parliament Asaduddin Owaisi along with the then Principal Secretary Arvind Kumar and other officials.
“What was the need of Owaisi to be present there? What was his interest when the area falls under Chevella, which is not part of his constituency,” Ms. Sarwath questioned.
The area of the lake was manipulated by repeatedly shifting the boundaries, she alleged, and produced HMDA maps since 2014 to prove her point. In the maps, the area of the tank up to FTL was initially shown as 17.491 acres, which was later changed to 10.691 acres, only to be changed back to the original.
Ms. Sarwath alleged compromise and conspiracy at multiple levels to hand over the historic lake from which the Asafjahi royals drank, to land sharks.
