PIL in HC against Lalbagh parking lot

A city-based advocate filed a public interest litigation (PIL) in the High Court of Karnataka  Thursday against the move to construct a parking lot inside the Lalbagh.

The petitioner, S Vasudeva, said he would seek an early hearing of the case through a memo to the court. The matter is likely to be posted before the bench headed by Chief Justice Vikramajit Sen on Monday.

The parking lot, proposed to be built on a five-acre plot at the South Gate of the botanical garden, is meant for vehicles of visitors to the biannual flower shows. However, in the wake of reports on the probable threat to the garden and the subsequent public outcry, the government has temporarily suspended the construction work.

The petition said that the space selected for the parking lot is close to the Kempegowda tower, which is a protected monument under the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI).

The construction, within a radius of 300 metre of the monument is a violation of ASI rules and Sections 6 and 8 of the Karnataka Park, Play-fields and Open Spaces (Preservation and Regulation) Act, 1985. The respondents, including officials of the departments concerned, were liable for imprisonment for a period of upto six months if the violation was proved, he said.

The PIL said no permission had been obtained from the competent authority for the construction of the parking lot with a capacity of 500 cars. The petitioner expressed concern over the ignorance of even the principal secretary of the department of horticulture, PWD secretary and director of horticulture about the provisions of the Act, while undertaking the parking lot project.

Prof Sadashiv, president of the Walkers Association, initiated the petition on www.greenpeacex.in, an online platform of Greenpeace India.

Election petition dismissed

The High Court has dismissed an election petition against BJP MLA from Jagalur constituency, S V Ramachandra.

Obaiah, a resident of Jagalur in Davangere district, had filed the petition alleging that the MLA filed a fake caste certificate, while contesting the 2008 Assembly election and the subsequent byelection from the constituency reserved for Scheduled Tribes.

The PIL alleged that while the school certificates showed the candidate was from the Maratha community, he had produced a fake certificate to the Election Commission.

The bench headed by Chief Justice Vikramajit Sen dismissed the petition, saying it was not a PIL and questioning the purpose of filing such a plea after four years since the election.