The curtains have came down on the long-drawn legal battle between the Archaeological Survey of India and the Bharat Scouts and Guides for 13 acres in front of world heritage monument, the Humayun's Tomb, with the ASI undertaking demolition action of clearing up illegal encroachments from the area this past week.
The action followed an order passed by the Delhi High Court in favour of the ASI, stating that the land in question belonged to the ASI and the illegal encroachment on it should be removed.
An ASI official said: “Armed with the High Court order the ASI officials started demolition of more than 150 constructions made earlier. These encroachments included settlements made by employees of the Bharat Scouts and Guides among others.”
The High Court-appointed Court Commissioner also visited the site on May 14 to check the veracity of the statement made by the Bharat Scouts and Guides of claiming the area in question as its own. The Supreme Court Monitoring Committee, which had earlier sealed the area, was also monitoring the progress of the case.
The ASI in partnership with the Agha Khan Trust proposes to develop a Mughal Charbagh around the monument and make it an extension of the Humayun's Tomb.
