SDMC, which was not a party to the settlement, submitted before the court today that collection of entry tax from four lanes "is not possible" as it would be difficult to segregate and divert the commercial vehicles, like cabs, from other cars and would lead to clogging.
SDMC argued if it is allowed to use all 16 toll plazas, it will only stop vehicles which are liable to pay entry tax and no other and the barriers will remain in open position always.
NHAI objected to the claim of SDMC, saying all structures on national highways belong to it and access to the same is decided only by it and no one else as per statute.
It said permission to set up structures and take them down are given by it and it has the right to revoke the same.
It also said that as per the agreement between Delhi government, SDMC and its contractor to collect entry tax from commercial vehicles, NHAI is not obligated to provide any infrastructure or support to any of them.
"The agreement does not contemplate anything to be done by us," NHAI told the court.
It also said having toll plazas defeats the whole purpose of having an expressway.
Meanwhile, the contractor pleaded with the court to protect it till the issue, raised by SDMC, is decided as it has to pay Rs 26 crore per day to the civic body and it cannot do that from the collection derived from four toll lanes.
The court, however, said it will come to the contractor's plea after it decides SDMC's issue and refused to pass any interim order.
It had earlier refused to implead SDMC as a party in the dispute involving NHAI, DGSCL and IDFC saying this plea "cannot be accepted, coupled with the fact that NHAI has agreed to provide four lanes of the toll plaza, as discussed earlier, to the applicant to charge the toll tax from the commercial vehicles. NHAI is also ready to cooperate with SDMC who can create its infrastructure for the purposes of collecting toll tax".
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