Delhi High Court paves way for demolition of unsafe Signature View Apartments built for 2010 CWG

The Delhi High Court on Wednesday upheld the order of a single-judge for the demolition of Signature View Apartments which have been declared structurally unsafe [Man Mohan Singh Attri v. Union of India & Ors]..A Division Bench of Chief Justice Devendra Kumar Upadhyaya and Justice Tushar Rao Gedela rejected the appeal filed by Man Mohan Singh Attri, a resident of the complex against the razing of the Commonwealth Games-era housing complex. The Court ruled that there is no reason to interfere with the competent authorities’ order or the single judge’s verdict upholding the decision.“In the facts of the case, it cannot, by any stretch of imagination, be said that there was no relevant material before the authority that passed the order dated 18.12.2023 for removal of the buildings. Various reports of investigation by the Structural Consultants and findings of the testing agency were placed before the authority concerned who on consideration of the said material formed his opinion as per the requirement of Section 348 of the DMC Act and thereafter has passed the order for demolition of the buildings in question,” the Court observed. .The Signature View Apartments, spread across 12 towers in Mukherjee Nagar, were initially constructed for players and officials of the Commonwealth Games. After the event, the flats were sold to residents. But within years, occupants began reporting cracks, falling plaster, corroded steel and structural instability.Multiple technical studies, first by the National Council for Cement and Building Materials in 2015 and 2019, and later by Professor Shashank Bishnoi of IIT Delhi in 2022, warned that the buildings have deteriorated beyond repair. Bishnoi recommended immediate evacuation and dismantling, citing risks to life. Following these reports, the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) issued an order on December 18, 2023 under Sections 348 and 349 of the Delhi Municipal Corporation Act, directing residents to vacate the towers. Attri challenged this before the High Court but a single judge dismissed both his writ petition and subsequent review petition..On appeal, the Division Bench held that the authorities acted on “tangible and relevant material”. "For the reasons aforesaid, we do not find any good ground to interfere in the orders passed by the learned Single Judge which are under challenge in this intra-Court appeal, which accordingly fails. Resultantly, the appeal is hereby dismissed," the Court finally ordered. .Appellant Man Mohan Singh Attri was represented by advocates Sachin Jain and Ajay Kumar Agarwal. Senior Advocate Sanjay Jain along with advocates Sanjay Katyal, Kritika Gupta, Vidur Mohan, Harshita Sukhija and Vidushi Singhania appeared for the Delhi Development Authority (DDA). Advocates Raghuvendra Upadhyay, Purnima Jain and Tanmay Jain represented the Delhi government. Standing Counsel Puja S Kalra and advocate Virendra Singh appeared for the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD). .[Read Judgment]