JAMMU, Nov. 27 -- The High Court of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh on Tuesday came down heavily on the government for failing to complete the Mini Secretariat project at Mendhar in Poonch district despite its clear directions issued nearly nine years ago. The court observed that the prolonged inaction amounted to "deliberate and wilful defiance" of its 2016 order directing completion of the building by the end of 2017.
A Division Bench comprising Chief Justice Arun Palli and Justice Rajnesh Oswal was hearing a contempt petition filed by two residents of Mendhar who had approached the court after construction of the Secretariat building came to a halt at the lintel stage. The project had been undertaken after the forest nursery located in front...