Central Vista Plan: Supreme Court Asks, ‘Are You Allotting Just 2 Rooms for 9 Lakh Books?’ Orders Detailed Affidavit
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Summarized by AI; it may make mistakes. Check important info
The Supreme Court on Monday directed the Union government to submit a detailed affidavit clarifying whether adequate space is being allotted under the Central Vista Redevelopment Plan for the 135-year-old Central Secretariat Library.
A bench comprising Justice Sanjay Kumar and Justice Sanjeev Sachdeva took up a suo motu case following reports that the historic library, which houses nearly 8.5 lakh books, faces severe spatial constraints due to the planned demolition of its current home at Shastri Bhawan.
Apex Court Raises Concerns Over Storage of 8.5 Lakh Books
During the proceedings, the bench expressed sharp concern over whether the proposed allocation would fit the library's vast collection, which includes rare manuscripts and government archives dating back to 1891. Referring to issues flagged by a retired High Court judge, Justice Sanjay Kumar questioned the government’s plan.
"This library dates back to 1891. Are you allotting only two rooms?" Justice Kumar asked the government counsel.
The court specifically pointed out that nearly 2 lakh books belonging to the library are currently stored in cardboard boxes at R.K. Puram due to lack of space. The bench questioned whether these boxed volumes would be left out of the new setup entirely.
"You are leaving out 2 lakh books in R.K. Puram?" the bench asked, insisting that any future arrangement must accommodate the entire repository rather than keeping parts of it in temporary storage.
Formal Affidavit and Structural Plans Demanded
Additional Solicitor General Aishwarya Bhati, appearing for the Centre, told the court that the Central Vista project includes dedicated space for the library. She pointed out that officials from the Central Vista project were present in the courtroom to explain the layout.
However, the bench declined to accept oral explanations, stating that a binding written commitment was necessary given the scale of the collection. The court ordered the Union government to file a comprehensive affidavit containing actual floor plans, exact site measurements, and structural layouts.
The affidavit must explicitly state whether the designated space can hold both the active collection at Shastri Bhawan and the 2 lakh volumes packed in boxes at R.K. Puram. To assist the court in evaluating the ground reality, Senior Advocate Haripriya Padmanabhan was appointed as amicus curiae.
