Court dismisses STELCO case against road work fees
In its plea to the High Court, STELCO said that the council's practices were in violation of the decentralization act.
By
Aman Haleem
The registrar of the High Court has decided not to entertain a petition filed by STELCO seeking quashing of the policy issued by the City Council to levy fees for the construction of the city's road.
The civic body had formulated a regulation for ground work in public areas in effect from last month.
As per the policy,:
-
If tilling roadside, charged – MVR 25 per foot per day
-
To lift the manhole cover and bury the cable – MVR 300 for each cable junction
-
To remove and relay road pavement stones – MVR 100 per square feet per day
STELCO had filed a constitutional case against the Male City Council with the high court. However, the registrar of the high court, Mariyam Hurshida, said that the legal reasons for filing the complaint was not included with the application form.
In its plea to the High Court, STELCO said that the council's practices were in violation of the decentralization act and the provisions of the Constitution that empower councils. The two regulations are as follows:
-
Guidelines for non-road blockade and road blockade in Male
-
General practice of road work
The registrar noted that it was the responsibility of the petitioner to present in detail the reasons for believing that the council's regulations were applicable to the Constitution or the law. However, the charge sheet in the case did not mention the reasons for violation of the rules and regulations of the Male City Council.
Apart from STELCO, other cable-based service providers have raised concerns over the hike in road work fee. The council, however, maintained that the rates were not high and that the rates were hiked as the council had to spend more on repairing the roads.
Apart from the issue of hike in road work rates, STELCO has also raised concerns over non-payment of electricity bills by the council and denial of land to install transformers.
