DNA Explainer: The journey of Modi Govt's Central Vista project through Opposition's criticism and legal battles

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday inaugurated the revamped Central Vista Avenue in the heart of the national capital. The stretch features lawns on either side of Rajpath -- now renamed as Kartavya Path (path of duty) -- from Rashtrapati Bhavan to India Gate, covering around 101 acres. 

With the historic Rajpath getting a new name, the government has linked it to PM Modi's call for freeing the country of a "colonial mindset" as part of the "five pledges" he invoked on the Independence Day. 

The government said the move is part of a continuous and conscious effort by the prime minister to shed the baggage of colonial legacy and colonial symbols and replace those with Indian traditions and strategic thought.

The ambitious Rs 1,345-crore project went through several hurdles and stiff criticism from the opposition during its development phase. The opposition cornered the Narendra Modi government for continuing the construction work during the first wave of COVID-19 and lockdown. The Centre, however, time and again reiterated that all labourers were staying on site. 

Petitions were filed before the Delhi High Court and Supreme Court, raising concerns over the impact of this move on the construction workers and Delhi's COVID situation. The Centre, however, called the PIL a "facade" and an attempt to stall the project.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is set to inaugurate the revamped Central Vissta Avenue in the heart of the national capital today. The stretch features lawns on either side of Rajpath -- now renamed as Kartavya Path (path of duty) -- from Rashtrapati Bhavan to India Gate, covering around 101 acres. 

With the historic Rajpath getting a new name, the government has linked it to PM Modi's call for freeing the country of a "colonial mindset" as part of the "five pledges" he invoked on the Independence Day. 

The government said the move is part of a continuous and conscious effort by the prime minister to shed the baggage of colonial legacy and colonial symbols and replace those with Indian traditions and strategic thought.

Opposition's criticism

The ambitious Rs 1,345-crore project went through several hurdles and stiff criticism from the opposition during its development phase. The opposition cornered the Narendra Modi government for continuing the construction work during the first wave of COVID-19 and lockdown. The Centre, however, time and again reiterated that all labourers were staying on site. 

Several petitions were filed before the Delhi High Court and Supreme Court, raising concerns over the impact of this move on the construction workers and Delhi's COVID situation. The Centre, however, called the PIL a "facade" and an attempt to stall the project.

The opposition also urged the central government to scrap the project, for which Rs 20,000 crore were allocated initially, and divert the funds to deal with the pandemic. 

At the same time, conservationists said that the revamp will meddle with the history of the current building, which was designed by Edwin Lutyens. The 1927 building will be a lost heritage, they said.

The environmentalists claim that the Central Vista Project poses a big threat to the environment. Many civil society groups and environmental organisations have appealed to the Centre to stop the “ambitious Central Vista Redevelopment Project”, at least till the pandemic is over.

A statement was issued by 65 organisations, urging the central government to pause the Rs 13,450 crore project and divert all available resources towards the handling of the pandemic.

Legal hurdles

On January 5 last year, the Supreme Court allowed the Central Vista project to go ahead. A Bench of Justices A M Khanwilkar, Dinesh Maheshwari and Sanjiv Khanna pronounced the 2-1 judgment, with Justice Khanwilkar and Justice Maheshwari forming the majority. Justice Khanna pronounced a separate judgment.

Filed in April 2020, the petition challenged the Centre’s change-of-land-use notification of March 2020 with regard to the 86 acres of land. The petitioner, Rajeev Suri, submitted that the order violated the citizen’s Right to Life guaranteed under Article 21 by depriving people of open and green spaces. 

The petition also argued that the notification violated the Master Plan of Delhi 2021, and that the Centre’s notification sought to override an earlier (December 2019) notice issued by the Delhi Development Authority inviting objections against the proposed changes in land use, which was itself under challenge in the top court at the time.

Later in June 2021, the top court dismissed an appeal filed against the Delhi High Court judgment refusing to halt the Central Vista redevelopment project work in the Capital amid the COVID-19 pandemic and imposing Rs 1 lakh fine on the petitioners.