Bombay High Court pulls up Maharashtra government for not repairing roads
The Bombay High Court pulled up the Maharashtra government for poor conditions of roads in the state. In its observations, the court said that providing good-condition roads is as much the responsibility of the Maharashtra government as it is of the corporations.
The two-judge bench of the Bombay High Court on Friday pulled up the Maharashtra government for poor conditions of roads in the state while hearing a contempt petition seeking action against the civic authorities. The action was sought for failing to implement a 2018 order of the Bombay HC that directed the repair of potholes along all arterial roads in Mumbai and neighbouring areas.
In his observation, Chief Justice DK Upadhyaya said, "A pedestrian or cyclist falling in the gutter is not a natural cause. It is a man-made cause. You have to attend to it. It is not just under the constitution but under all statutes of the authorities. All this is not an exercise to be done by the court. Why should we perform all this? This is your job."
The bench of Chief Justice DK Upadhyaya and Justice Arif Doctor was upset with the Maharashtra government for not taking any decision on a suggestion made by the Bombay High Court in 2022 to hand over all roads under the jurisdiction of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) for maintenance and repair work.
In his arguments, senior counsel PP Kakde, appearing for the Maharashtra government, said that he would need time to take instructions on the issue but the decision is still pending.
Hearing Kakde's argument, the two-judge bench of the Bombay High Court observed, "It was a simple executive decision. Why is it taking so long? Providing motorable safe roads is as much your responsibility as it is of the corporations. What have you done? The menace continues even today. The problem continues."
The remarks of the bench came on a petition filed by advocate Ruju Thakker seeking contempt action to be initiated against the civic authorities for failing to implement a 2018 order directing the repair of potholes along all arterial roads in Mumbai and neighbouring areas.
During the hearing, the commissioners of the BMC, Thane Municipal Corporation, Kalyan Dombivli Municipal Corporation, Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation, Vasai Virar Municipal Corporation and Mira Bhayander Municipal Corporation were present in court on Friday in consonance with the Bombay HC directives passed on Wednesday.
In the hearing, Mumbai's civic body BMC submitted before the court that 2050 km of roads under their jurisdiction are in fine condition and that the existing potholes and open manholes were due to the negligence of other civic bodies which have authority over 175 km in Mumbai.
BMC also pointed out that incessant torrential rains in Mumbai also deteriorated the conditions of the pathways and roads. It also shared statistics and presentations to back its claim.
However, disapproving the statistics of the BMC, Chief Justice DK Upadhyaya noted, "I have been a student of statistics. On the very first day, my teacher told the students that there are three kinds of lies. There are lies, damn lies and statistical lies."
In the hearing, the two-judge bench also directed all the corporations to submit affidavits before the court providing exhaustive and detailed information about steps initiated to ensure pothole-free roads in Mumbai.
The bench also directed the 24 ward officers of the BMC to carry out detailed on-ground inspections in Mumbai and submit a report within three weeks. The inspections will be made in the presence of a few senior counsel who will ultimately submit a report before the Bombay High Court.
Concluding Friday's hearing, the bench referred the matter to September 29 for the next hearing.
