New Delhi, August 01: The Supreme Court on Friday asked the government to ensure that no temple, mosque or any other place of worship would henceforth be constructed on public space, street or property.
A bench comprising Justice Dalveer Bhandari and Justice Mukundakam Sharma asked solicitor general Gopal Subramanium to file an affidavit before the court – within four weeks – giving an assurance in this regard.
To ensure that the mandate of the court is implemented, the bench said if any structure is constructed in violation of the order, the officer responsible for preventing such encroachments on public land should be punished.
Giving enough time to the Centre to take up the matter with state governments, the bench posted the matter for further hearing on September 29.
The court has decided to focus on preventing the construction of such structures for now. That’s because it has realised it’s not easy to demolish the existing ones. “As far as existing religious structures are concerned, we understand demolishing them will create law and order problems,” the court said.
The direction came while the court was hearing a special leave petition (SLP) by the Centre, challenging a Gujarat High Court order – passed on May 2, 2006 – directing the demolition of structures, including religious ones, on public land and roads.
Though the Centre was not a party before the high court, it filed an appeal before the Supreme Court, fearing communal disturbance. The apex court had stayed the order and the demolitions being carried out by the municipal authorities in compliance with the high court order.
During a hearing in March last year, Subramanium, then additional solicitor- general, had submitted that the Centre had decided to talk to all state governments to reach a consensus on a mechanism to deal with the problem of encroachments on public land and streets.
To ensure that the government fulfilled its commitment, Justice Bhandari sought a response on a sworn affidavit to be filed within four weeks.
The Centre had rushed to the court after the high court order had led to a tense situation in Gujarat. It had sought an immediate stay of the high court order because the demolitions being carried out on the directions of the court had led to communal violence in Vadodara.
The high court had passed the direction for demolition of illegal structures after taking suo motu cognisance of a newspaper report.
Justifying its intervention, the Centre said it was concerned about the safety of the citizens and if the high court order was not stayed, it would have serious ramifications on the unity, integrity and security of the nation and its secular fabric.
It had clarified that it was not justifying unauthorised constructions. In its SLP, the Centre submitted that the direction by the high court was liable to be set aside as it was issued without verifying the facts.
–Agencies