Thaindian News

Lucknow, June 19 (IANS) The Uttar Pradesh government will move the Supreme Court Friday challenging an order of the Allahabad High Court restricting it from carrying out any more demolition in the Sahara Shahr housing complex in Lucknow. This follows a stay order by the Lucknow bench of the Allahabad High Court Thursday evening restricting the Lucknow Development Authority from razing any construction in the Sahara Shahr after Wednesday night’s demolition.

The Sahara group Thursday moved the high court terming the demolition of the 1.2-km boundary wall and some adjoining constructions of “Sahara Shahr” Wednesday as unauthorised, officials said.

Shashank Shekhar Singh, state cabinet secretary, said Thursday: “The Uttar Pradesh government has decided to challenge the high court order in the Supreme Court tomorrow.”

In an operation that had started Wednesday night and lasted till the wee hours Thursday, Lucknow Development Authority’s (LDA) demolition squad razed different portions of boundary walls of the Sahara Shahr housing complex and other set-ups in the locality that were standing on the area earmarked for a green belt, officials said.

The other set-ups demolished by the LDA bulldozers were built with the support of the boundary wall and were pucca cottages belonging to the company’s employees.

There was complete confusion Wednesday evening before the demolition took place with initial reports suggesting that Sahara itself had agreed to demolish the construction on a warning by the LDA.

“The Sahara Shahr’s boundary wall and the constructions adjacent to it had encroached upon about 35-metre of the area reserved for the green belt in the master plan,” a senior LDA official said, requesting anonymity.