The Supreme Court on Monday directed the Delhi Urban Shelter Improvement Board (DUSIB) to submit a report along with photographs stating condition of five shelter homes for the homeless which have been closed by it for reportedly being in dilapidated condition.
A bench comprising justices B R Gavai and Sandeep Mehta asked the counsel for the DUSIB to file an affidavit about the status of these shelter homes within two weeks.
The direction came after advocate Prashant Bhushan told the apex court that DUSIB had locked five shelter homes near Dandi Park forcing homeless people to live on roads in the winter.
“The SC in its order dated March 28 last year had stayed any further demolition of shelters for the urban homeless in Delhi without its permission. But, in spite of the order, DUSIB has now locked the shelter homes and people are forced to live on the street. This is contempt of the court order. There are 1 to 2 lakh homeless people while the shelter homes compared to it is not even 20 per cent,” Bhushan submitted.
The counsel appearing for DUSIB submitted that after the Yamuna floods in June and July last year, the shelter homes were in a dilapidated condition.
“We had filed a plea in the top court wherein we made a proposal that persons living in these shelter homes will be shifted permanently to Geeta colony. The matter is under consideration. The five shelter homes are in an uninhabitable condition,” the DUSIB lawyer said, adding, the Board has taken a pledge that not even a single person will die in this winter due to cold.
When the bench asked the DUSIB lawyer why the shelter homes could not be restored, the lawyer said they are located on Yamuna floodplain and it will not be possible.
The bench then directed,”You place on record the status report of these five shelter homes. You also submit photographs of the accommodation in Geeta colony meant for homeless people.”
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The apex court had last year restrained several authorities, including the Delhi Urban Shelter Improvement Board (DUSIB), Delhi Police and the Delhi Development Authority, from demolishing temporary shelters for the homeless in the national capital without getting its permission.
The SC had passed the order while hearing a matter related to three temporary shelters at Geeta Ghat, built for the special category of the homeless such as individuals afflicted with TB, orthopaedic disabilities, and mental health conditions.
The bench had further directed the DUSIB to work out and present a plan within the next six weeks about the creation of alternative shelters instead of those demolished at the behest of Delhi police, DDA, or any other agency.
The apex court was hearing an application filed against the demolition of night shelters at Sarai Kale Khan allegedly without providing any alternate accommodation.
