The Delhi High Court has sought the Centre’s response to allegations that construction of a permanent medical college building at Atal Bihari Vajpayee Institute of Medical Sciences (ABVIMS) and Dr Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital has not begun despite a sanctioned allocation of Rs 472.9 crore.
Justice Neena Bansal Krishna directed the authorities to file a compliance report within four weeks. The matter has been listed for further hearing on January 6, 2027.
The court was hearing a contempt petition filed by Social Jurist, a civil rights group, which alleged that the authorities had failed to comply with earlier directions concerning the proposed building. The petition was represented by advocate Ashok Agarwal.
According to the report, the Centre sanctioned and approved Rs 472.9 crore for the project on February 17, 2024. The petitioner has alleged that construction had still not started at the project site. The proposed facility is intended to serve as the permanent medical college building associated with ABVIMS and RML Hospital.
The petitioner had earlier approached the authorities after claiming that an RTI response dated June 13, 2026, showed that no construction had commenced. The Delhi High Court subsequently disposed of that earlier plea in July, directing the authorities to consider the NGO’s representation and take an appropriate decision and action in accordance with law.
Social Jurist has alleged that, despite informing the government about the court’s July directions, no decision on its representation dated June 22 was communicated to it. The group has therefore sought contempt proceedings against the officials concerned, arguing that the construction-related directions have not been acted upon.
The latest order does not determine whether contempt has been committed or whether the allegations regarding the project’s status are established. It gives the respondents four weeks to place their compliance report on record, after which the court will consider the matter further.
The case places a court-monitored deadline on the authorities to clarify the status of the sanctioned medical college building, the action taken after the earlier directions and the reasons, if any, for the reported delay in beginning construction.
