The Delhi High Court criticized the MCD for the garbage-strewn roads and uncovered drains in Ghazipur, where a mother and son tragically died after falling into a waterlogged drain.

On Tuesday, the court remarked that the civic administration has turned into a "cosy club," with senior officers lacking the courage to take action against underperforming employees.

A bench headed by Acting Chief Justice Manmohan warned that it would begin suspending senior officials. The court noted that photographs of the location revealed a shocking state of affairs, with waste lying along the road for months, if not years. It went on to say that the MCD should be "dissolved" as it is "not serving anyone's purpose."

"They (MCD officials) fly like a bee and sting like a butterfly. They don't have the courage to take action against their own officials. There is no brotherly love over here. If someone is not performing, pull him up. Senior officers have to perform an unpleasant task," the bench, also comprising Justice Tushar Rao Gedela.

"Your officers are now becoming goody-goodies. They can't take any action. Look at these photographs. Shocking state of affairs in a place like Delhi. No wonder we have dengue, chikungunya," the bench said, said pulling up senior officials of the Municipal Corporation of Delhi.

The court stated that authorities should have closed or barricaded the open drains in the area and questioned how many lives must be lost before they understand the "gravity of the situation."

"How can it be unbarricaded? You think people will walk over water? Only MCD officials can be having this blessing that they can walk over water," the court remarked.

The bench asserted that senior officers were not exercising their supervisory powers, resulting in a situation where "no one is working."

"How much waste and debris is lying there. You took over the road (last year). What have you done on this stretch of road? Today your department thinks doing work is a crime... We will start suspending senior officials," the court said.

"No one takes action against each other. It is not supposed to be a cosy club. The administration has become a very very cozy club. Checks and balances have all gone lost.... Every day there are deaths due to negligence," it stated.

The court, which requested the presence of the MCD deputy commissioner during the hearing, ordered that the open drains be barricaded and the area cleaned. It also raised concerns about the absence of the MCD standing committee and the lack of a scheduled date for the next cabinet meeting, remarking that the officers seemed to be "beyond redemption."

"They are all big boss.. MCD is not serving anyone's purpose. Let it be dissolved," an exasperated court said.

The court directed the DDA, which also owns a portion of the drain in the area, to barricade the open drains and file a status report. Despite both DDA and MCD counsel maintaining that the incident did not occur within their respective jurisdictions, the court stated it would not delve into that issue and asked the police to complete their investigation promptly. The court emphasized that there cannot be "black holes" in the city where certain areas are without the superintendence of any authority.

The MCD counsel clarified that there was no confusion regarding the demarcation of their respective jurisdictions on the road in question, and the issue was solely about determining the exact spot where the deceased fell into the open drain. The court described the incident as indicative of "criminal negligence," asked the investigating officer to file a status report, and scheduled the next hearing for August 22.

"Let the police investigate. Ensure the investigation gets completed quickly. He must be alive to the situation. The investigation is going on at a slow pace. Two people have lost their lives," the court said.

The investigating officer, who was present in court, reported that an inquiry was underway and notices had been sent to both the MCD and the DDA following an FIR registered under Section 106 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita for "causing death by negligence." 

The Deputy Commissioner informed the court that efforts were being made to cover the drains and clean the area, but noted that a significant amount of garbage was coming from the Uttar Pradesh side due to the location being near the border.

The court took strong exception to the officer "arguing" about the issue rather than providing assurances of corrective measures, emphasizing that the situation could not be any worse.

"This (garbage) is for months if not years. The problem is this - you don't work. And none of the seniors have the guts to take action against you. The whole city has to suffer because of people like you. Even if you don't come to work, it can't be worse than this," the court said.

"He must understand he must go to jail for this. Drains that are 8 ft deep can't be left unbarricaded," added the court.

The court was hearing a PIL filed by Jhunnu Lal Srivastava, a resident of Mayur Vihar Phase 3, seeking action against the contractor and officials of the DDA for their alleged negligence that led to the deaths of a woman and her three-year-old son. Tanuja (22) and her son Priyansh (3) drowned in a half-open under-construction drain on a waterlogged street in east Delhi's Ghazipur area as heavy rains lashed Delhi-NCR on the evening of July 31. The incident occurred around 8 p.m. near the Khoda Colony area.