The Delhi High Court has directed the CEO of the Delhi Urban Shelter Improvement Board (DUSIB) to appear before the court if the board fails to settle its outstanding dues to the Akshaya Patra Foundation by July 20.
The foundation has been responsible for providing food at all night shelters in Delhi.
A division bench of Chief Justice Satish Chandra Sharma and Justice Sanjeev Narula expressed dissatisfaction with the non-payment of dues to the foundation for the free meals project in Delhi’s ‘Rain Basera’ (night shelter homes).
The court had initiated the Public Interest Litigation on its own after taking cognisance of news reports concerning the underprivileged seeking shelter and being deprived of cooked meals. It had then directed the foundation to continue providing food to all Rain Baseras on the same payment basis as before.
The court summoned the CEO of DUSIB to explain the reasons for the non-payment of Rs 9.5 crore, according to the foundation.
Standing counsel for the Delhi government, Santosh Kumar Tripathi, informed the court that the city government had decided to settle all dues to Akshaya Patra several weeks ago to ensure uninterrupted meals. However, despite clear orders from ministers, some officials are still not making the payment and are acting arbitrarily, Tripathi claimed.
He further stated that if well-known organisations like Akshaya Patra face harassment, it raises concerns about how officials might be dealing with other institutions.
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