Bangalore: Karnataka High Court Tuesday criticised the state government for not constituting ward committees in Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (Bangalore Corporation) which led to garbage mess in the city.
The Court directed the government to constitute ward committees for all the 198 wards in BBMP and nominate members to the committees by January 21.
Observing it as a "clear case of total inaction", a division bench comprising Justices N Kumar and BV Nagarathna, while hearing a batch of writ petitions including the one filed by advocate GR Mohan seeking superceding of civic body for its failure to act on the garbage disposal issue, said, "it is unfortunate that even after five years of the constitution of the present Corporation (BBMP), the government has not taken any steps to nominate members to the ward committees which are yet to constituted".
"It is a clear case of total inaction. Probably that is the reason why Bangalore city is suffering.....It is directly and squarely because of the government," the court observed.
The fact that the committees have not been constituted even after five hears of the formation of the present corporation is a "good ground for superceding the civic body", the court observed.
However, the court observed that whatever order it passes is in public interest. But unless these orders are implemented on the ground level and "proper, prompt and honest steps taken, it is not possible to solve the problem".
Therefore, it was of utmost importance that ward committees were constituted at the earliest so that the members (of the ward committees) could be held personally liable for any future mismanagement, the court said.
When the government advocate submitted that it was the corporation or the council which has to constitute the committees and not the government and if the court orders, the government would so, the court said "if you have so much respect for the court, what have you done with respect to the issue in the past few months."
The government advocate then sought 15 days time to constitute the committees which the court granted.
PTI
