FRIENDS OF VICTORIA MEMORIALversusHOWRAH GANATANTRIK NAGARIK SAMITY & ORS.

                        [2011] 11 S.C.R. 374


A               FRIENDS OF VICTORIA MEMORIAL
                                   v.
       HOWRAH GANATANTRIK NAGARIK SAMITY & ORS.
            (SLP (Civil) Nos. 1135-1136 of 2009)
                       SEPTEMBER 12, 2011
B
          [R.V. RAVEENDRAN AND A.K. PATNAIK, JJ.)

        Environment Laws:

c       Public Interest Litigation - Protection and Preservation
  of Victoria Memorial Hall, Kolkata and its green surroundings
  - Filing of writ petition - Direction by High Court that parking
  of all cars around the compound of the Victoria Memorial Hall
  and. nearby areas be immediately prohibited and such
D prohibition to continue for 24 hours every day including the
  holidays - Application filed before the High Court seeking
  permission for morning walkers to park their cars in the north
  and south zones of Victoria Memorial Hall for two hours in the
  early morning - Application dismissed - Held: Expert
  Committee recommended that parking activities add to
E pollution load around the Victoria Memorial Hall and thus, the
  parking of vehicles on all sides of the Victoria Memorial Hall
  compound should be totally banned - Those who want to walk
  and take their cars to the place of their walk have sufficient
  number of alternative places in Kolkata where they can go for
F their morning walks - Thus, orders of the High Court does not
  call for interference - Constitution of India, 1950 - Article 136.

        CIVIL APPELLATE JURISDICTION : SLP (Civil} No.
    1135-1136 of 2009.
G
        From the Judgment & Order dated 28.09.2007 of the
    Calcutta High Court in W.P. 7987 (W) of 2002.

        Avijit Bhattacharjee, Sarbani Kar, Debnjani Das

H                                374
      FRIENDS OF VICTORIA MEMORIAL v. HOWRAH                 375
            GANATANTRIK NAGARIK SAMITY
    Purkayashta, Bidyabrata Acharya, Pranab Kumar Mullick for       A
    the Petitioner.

          Respondent-in-Person (R 1 & R 2), Dharam Bir Raj Vohra
    for the Respondent.

        The order of the Court was delivered                        B

                               ORDER
        A. K. PATNAIK, J. 1. Delay condoned.
        2. These Special Leave Petitions under Article 136 of the   C
    Constitution are directed against the orders dated 28.09.2007
    and 15.02.2008 of the Division Bench of the Calcutta High
    Court in Writ Petition No.7987 (W) of 2002.
        3. The facts very briefly are that during the British rule,
  Victoria Memorial Hall was built in the memory of Queen D
  Victoria in Central Kolkata. After independence, this monument
  continues to be known for its beautiful architecture and green
  surroundings. To the north of the Victoria Memorial Hall is a .
  huge stretch of land known as 'the Maidan' which is covered
  by green grass and interspersed with a large number of trees, E
  bushes and shrubs. To protect and preserve the Victoria
' Memorial Hall and its green surroundings, a public interest
  litigation (Writ Petition No. 7987(W) of 2002) was filed in the
  Calcutta High Court by the respondent nos. 1 to 5.
         4. After hearing all concerned parties and considering the F
    petitions, affidavits and counter affidavits and the
1
    recommendations of expert bodies, the High Court, inter ali?,
    directed in the impugned order dated 28.09.2007 that parking
    of all cars around the compound of the Victoria Memorial Hall .
    shown as red-marked portions in the annexed map and nearby G
    areas would be immediately prohibited and such prohibition
    would continue for 24 hours every day including the holidays.
    A group of persons describing itself as 'the Friends of Victoria
    Memorial' then filed an application before the High Court for
    modification of the aforesaid direction so as to permit morning H
   376      SUPREME COURT REPORTS               [2011] 11 S.C.R.


A walkers to park their cars in the north and south zones of
  Victoria Memorial Hall for two hours in the early morning. The
  High Court, however, dismissed the application by the
  impugned order dated 15.02.2008 saying that car parking has
  only been prohibited around Victoria Memorial Hall and
B persons desirous of morning walk may go to the Maidan which
  was lying vacant and may also walk by the side of Ganges or
  the Eden Garden area and the area around the grounds of
  Mohun Bagan, East Bengal and Mohammedan Sporting Clubs
  where there was no restriction of parking the vehicles.
c Aggrieved, the petitioner has filed these Special Leave
  Petitions.
       5. We have heard learned counsel for the parties and we
  find from the recommendations of the Expert Committee
  (annexed to the Special Leave Petitions as Annexure P1) that
o a Committee of Experts has observed that parking activities
  add to pollution load around the Victoria Memorial Hall and have
  accordingly recommended that the parking of vehicles on all
  sides of the Victoria Memorial Hall compound should be totally
  banned. The High Court appears to have considered these
E recommendations of the Expert Committee and directed in the
  impugned order dated 28.09.2007 that parking around the
  Victoria Memorial Hall on the red-marked portions of the map
  would be prohibited. The High Court has also indicated in the
  impugned order dated 15.02.2008 that there were many other
F places in Kolkata, such as Maidan, the Eden Garden area and
  the area around the grounds of Mohun Bagan, East Bengal and
  Mohammedan Sporting Clubs as well as the area by the side
  of the river Ganges where there was no restriction of parking
  the vehicles. Those who want to walk and take their cars to the
G place of their walk thus have sufficient number of alternative
  places in Kolkata where they can go for their morning walks.
       6. We are, therefore, not inclined to interfere with the
   impugned orders of the High Court and accordingly dismiss the
   Special Leave Petitions with no order as to costs.

H N.J.                                           SLP dismissed.