IANS

New Delhi, Nov 13: The Supreme Court Friday refused to suspend its order halting all construction and maintenance work at the memorial sites of Dalit leaders in Lucknow to enable the Uttar Pradesh government to prepare for Dr. B.R. Ambedkar's death anniversary on Dec 6.

A bench of Justices H.S. Bedi and J.M. Panchal refused to suspend the apex court's orders of Sep 8 and Sep 11, while refusing to accord an urgent hearing to the state government's plea to allow it to take up maintenance work in the sprawling Ambedkar Park for the Dec 6 function.

The bench said it would hear the plea by the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) government for maintenance work in the park only on Nov 30, the day slated earlier by the court's registry for the hearing.

The Mayawati-led government had moved the apex court seeking permission to prepare the sprawling park in the heart of Lucknow to celebrate the death anniversary of the Dalit icon and chairperson of the draft committee of the Indian constitution.

But the bench refused to oblige the government.

The court had on Sep 8 ordered the state government to halt further construction at various memorial sites in Lucknow. It was hearing a lawsuit by city resident Mithilesh Kumar Singh, who had challenged the government's construction spree, building a slew of parks and memorials in Lucknow at an estimated cost Rs.26 billion.