BMC withdraws petition on Powai Lake cycle track

Mumbai: The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has withdrawn a special leave petition (SLP) that it had filed before the Supreme Court (SC) last month, seeking to overturn Bombay high court’s May 6 order, which ruled that the proposed cycle track around Powai Lake was illegal. The SLP was filed on August 8.

“In view of law as it stands, the work of the cycling track is illegal and respondent BMC is restrained from carrying out any reclamation or construction work,” the HC held in May. However, BMC contended that the HC order was based “on erroneous grounds and without proper appreciation of the facts”. The civic body’s petition maintained that the project will lead to the creation of valuable public space in the city’s eastern suburbs.

At the time, officials as well as environmentalists critiqued the plan.

Member of parliament Manoj Kotak, who represents the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) from the Mumbai North East constituency, had on August 9 hit out at the BMC terming its challenge of the HC order as a misuse of taxpayer’s money and a waste of judicial time.

On Tuesday, however, J S Wad & Co (advocates for the BMC), wrote to the SC registrar, stating, “In the above captioned matter, we appear for municipal corporation of Greater Mumbai. We have been instructed by the petitioner corporation to withdraw the aforementioned SLP.”

Stalin D, director Vanashakti, one of the petitioners in the matter, noted merely withdrawing the SLP was not enough. “The HC had clearly instructed BMC to restore the lake’s boundary to its original condition as construction of the cycle track had already been carried out. Vanashakti will file execution proceedings in NGT and also contempt in HC if the restoration is not done within four weeks,” he said.