HC stays BBMP's tender for indoor stadium

The High Court of Karnataka stayed the invitation of tenders by the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike to construct an indoor stadium at Indiranagar 1st Stage.

While hearing a public interest litigation, a division bench of Acting Chief Justice H G Ramesh and Justice P S Dinesh Kumar also directed the BBMP and the state government to file their statement of objections.

P Freud Richardson from Indiranagar 1st Stage league residents welfare association had filed a petition stating that the Palike wants to construct the stadium on a playground.

The playground serves as an open space for children in the locality, neighbouring slums and schools and was the only open space available for residents of Indiranagar 1st and 2nd stage, the petition said.

Any infrastructure like the indoor stadium would come with a lot of restrictions on the usage and it would not be a free space for the public usage. There will also be an increase in the number of people using the stadium, the petitioner said.

The stadium was an attempt to encroach the playground over a period of time and deprive the public of the open space for want of commercial profit, the petition stated.

The bench adjourned the matter for further hearing.