Delhi HC rejects PIL seeking Indian National Army memorial at Red Fort

The Delhi high court on Wednesday dismissed a petition seeking the establishment of a dedicated memorial at the Red Fort for the martyrs of the Indian National Army (INA), saying that it could not direct the government to set aside land for such a purpose.

A bench of Chief Justice D K Upadhyaya and Justice Tejas Karia observed that establishing a memorial was not linked to any enforceable duty or legal right.

It added that announcements made through Press Information Bureau (PIB) press releases, by themselves, could not form the basis for claiming a legal right.

“Is this a justiciable issue? Nobody berates those martyrs in whose honour and respect you want to erect the memorial but can that become a subject matter of a writ petition? Erection of a memorial is not linked to any duty or right. How can we pass such a direction? How can we direct the government to allocate land in Red Fort and erect a memorial,” the bench said.

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“The announcements made through PIB press releases, in our opinion, do not itself, can form the basis of seeking any right”, the bench added.

The court issued the direction while dealing with a petition filed by one Mahan Swatantrata Senani Lalti Ram Trust, seeking directions to the Centre to take steps for establishing the memorial.

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In its petition, the trust asserted that the Centre in its written reply in the Lok Sabha on August 2, 2021 had approved various proposals related to Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose, including a proposal to construct the memorial in Red Fort to INA martyrs and despite the same no memorial had been established.

It added that the government’s failure violated the fundamental right to equality and right to life and personal liberty.

The court however granted the trust liberty to approach the relevant government ministry by way of a representation. It said that in case the trust filed a representation, the government must pass a reasoned order.