High Court stays demolition drive for Dwarka expressway

On Saturday, Huda had to halt its demolition drive to clear 68 buildings that fall in the alignment of Dwarka Expressway in New PalamVihar midway. The same happened after the Punjab and Haryana high court issued a stay order. The development body had made a concerted effort to free up land for the project that is running several years behind schedule. Huda, served notices to the occupants, asking them to vacate the premises within 24 hours on Friday. However, halfway through the drive, officials received a stay order from the HC but around 31 houses were already demolished. A hearing is fixed on the matter on May 29. The authorities had appointed four duty magistrates and formed six teams, comprising three HCS officers, three assistant commissioners of police, 900 cops and 300 employees of civic agencies, to carry out the drive. Developers showed unhappiness and said the stay would further delay their projects. They added it would also shatter the hopes of lakhs of homebuyers.