The Supreme Court of India ruled that three stands (I,J,K) of the M.A. Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai will not be used to seat spectators during the upcoming Indian Premier League (IPL). The apex court said that the stands constructed violated the safety norms and added that the unauthorised parts have to be demolished. .
"Your starting point was wrong. You are not an average citizen constructing one room or so, you are TNCA. Everything smells and everything stinks," a bench of Justice Ranjan Gogoi and Justice R.V. Ramana told TNCA which owns the stadium. The court was also surprised that initial inspections had cleared stands I and J.
The court directed the state board to send out the plan for the destruction of parts of the stands to the Chennai Municipal Corporation. The bench added that the board can request for a ground inspection once the demolishing is done and the stands conform to the safety standards.
Asking the TNCA to take necessary steps to remove unauthorised construction to meet the requirements of public safety, the court said: "If deficiencies are found to be removed, then CMC will act accordingly."
The court remained unimpressed when senior counsel Amit Sibal appearing for TNCA urged the court to allow them to use the three stands as in past 21 matches held in the stadium, spectators were seated in them.
TNCA pleaded that they be allowed permission to use the stands during the IPL, which kicks off on April 8th, following which they weill get around to the demolition of the unauthorised structures. It said that the ground has, in the past, used the stands for 21 games and there were no mishaps. TNCA sought similar permission for this IPL season as an interim measure.
The bench, however, rejected the plea saying, "We are not inclined to allow you to use the three stands. You should not have started the construction without planning permission and approval. Your starting point is stinking so many compromises with the authorities. We don't want to open a can of worms."
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