Excelsior Correspondent
SRINAGAR, June 5: The High Court today directed that no Court including Special Tribunals shall pass any kind of order in cases pertaining to construction in and around tourist resort of Sonamarg.
The Division Bench of Acting Chief Justice Alok Aradhe and Justice M K Hanjura said as the Court is custodia legis of the matter as such no Court or Tribunal should entertain any kind of proceedings which pertain to the construction in and around tourist resort of Sonamarg.
Hearing some of the applications filed by hoteliers seeking permission for minor renovations, the Court in view of the importance of the resort passed these directions as the Court has been informed that there are various hotels raised illegally or in contravention of the permissions.
Court asked the Counsel representing SDA as to why not action is being taken and who prevents the authorities to do so. SDA counsel submitted before the Court that when orders for taking actions are passed by the authority, those are being challenged before Special Tribunal and the tribunal compounds the huge deviations. Court questioned the Counsel why not you challenge those orders to which the counsel gave no satisfactory answer.
It may be mentioned here that Court last year in view of sensitivity of eco-system of Sonamarg took suo-moto cognizance and directed authorities to ensure that no construction is carried out within the peripheries of Sonamarg tourist resort till further orders from this Court.
The orders were passed in a petition relating to illegal construction on the banks of river Sindh. The said petition was filed by an advocate and court has observed that in wake of alarming condition of Sonamarg the instant petition is treated as suomoto proceedings taken by the court in order to save the resort before it become a concrete jungle.
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