The Supreme Court on October 7, 2026 criticized the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) and the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) for a “total lackadaisical approach” to tackling encroachments and preserving notified heritage structures in the national capital. A Bench of Justices Ahsanuddin Amanullah and N. Kotiswar Singh said the authorities were ignorant of essential details such as site ownership, status reports, and cleanliness, and failed to assist the Court Commissioner in implementing on‑ground measures.
The Court heard a petition filed by Delhi resident Rajeev Suri concerning the preservation and restoration of heritage sites. It flagged an absolute lack of cohesion among government departments and civic bodies in clearing encroachments and litter from Lodhi‑era tombs in Zamrudpur. The Bench summoned senior officials to appear on October 15 and instructed a senior central government officer to oversee inter‑departmental coordination. It directed the Secretary of the Union Ministry of Culture, the Commissioner of the MCD, the Chairperson of the New Delhi Municipal Council, the Secretary of the Delhi government’s Department of Archaeology, the Director General of the ASI, the Commissioner of the Delhi Development Authority, the Director General of the Central Public Works Department, and the Managing Director of the Delhi Tourism and Transportation Development Corporation to remain physically present in court.
Court‑appointed commissioners, led by senior advocate Gopal Sankaranarayanan, presented a report on five heritage monuments in south Delhi’s Zamrudpur. Despite being notified, the monuments were heavily encroached, littered, and their interiors used as dumping grounds; one had even served as a cow shed. The MCD cleared waste after the court’s intervention. Justice Amanullah questioned the MCD’s casual attitude, while ASI’s Director General Yadubir Singh Rawat cited a shortage of resources for its 4,000 monuments and was urged to seek 1,000 additional hands from the Centre.
The Bench granted a final indulgence to address illegal encroachments, warning that stringent orders would follow if directions were ignored. The MCD filed an affidavit outlining plans to prepare a Standard Operating Procedure for heritage sites and to explore geomapping for better identification and monitoring, aiming to finalise the SOP by the end of October. The court’s earlier August 24 ruling had already criticized the MCD for “total callousness” after it claimed sites were free of encroachments. Other affected sites include Lal Mahal in Nizamuddin and Tilangani Tomb, both facing encroachments.
