Himachal High Court imposes Rs 10K costs on SE for ‘incorrect’ NH photo

Taking a serious view of the incorrect picture projected before the court, the Himachal Pradesh High Court has imposed costs of Rs 10,000 on the Superintending Engineer, National Highways, Shimla with a direction to deposit the same personally in the Chief Justice Disaster Relief Fund before the next hearing.

The court has taken a strong note on the affidavit filed by the officer for failing to present an accurate picture regarding the condition of National Highways damaged in monsoon. Superintending Engineer, Rattan Kumar Sharma, who appeared in person, tendered an unconditional apology citing “misinterpretation of chronological facts” and confusion between drainage and surface components as the reason for inaccuracies in his earlier affidavit.

While perusing the affidavit, the division bench comprising Chief Justice Gurmeet Singh Sandhawalia and Justice Jiya Lal Bhardwaj observed that “the latest compliance affidavit acknowledged that several stretches of NH-05 and NH-705 were still under the Defect Liability Period (DLP) and that contractors had now begun restoration work through long-patch repairs and fresh tenders. Photographs of rectified portions were also placed on record, along with the assurance that work on the NH-705 stretch from Theog to Hatkoti would be completed by March 2026. The department also submitted estimates to the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways.”

However, the court noted stark contradictions between the department’s earlier submissions and the report dated October 7, 2025, filed by the Secretary, District Legal Services Authority (DLSA).

The bench further observed that “We have also gone through the report submitted by the Secretary, DLSA along with photographs, who had inspected the National Highway from Theog to Shimla in the presence of various officials. The report is self-speaking regarding the incorrect picture projected before this court. It has been mentioned in the report that maximum portion of the road has numerous potholes, some were filled with water while others had been temporarily covered with small raw stones and concrete. Only the road from Theog bypass to Theog via bypass road is in good condition and requires minor repairs. The said report thus vindicates prima facie observations made on the earlier date.”

The court also directed the Union of India to file its response and requested the Secretary, DLSA to carry out another inspection to verify whether the newly submitted photographs accurately reflect on ground conditions and whether repairs are progressing properly. The court listed the matter for further hearing on December 29.