MP Bar objects to temple ‘demolition’ at chief justice’s official bungalow, urges CJI
MP Bar objects to temple ‘demolition’ at chief justice’s official bungalow, urges CJI to order probe
M.U.H
28/12/202422
Bhopal: The Madhya Pradesh High Court Bar Association has written to the Chief Justice of India (CJI) seeking inquiry against the alleged demolition of a temple situated within the premises of official residence of Justice Suresh Kumar Kait.
HC Registrar General in Jabalpur, Dharmendra Singh Rathode, however, has denied any such demolition had taken place at the property. “Since the lordship has taken over the residential premises, there was no temple found at his official residence, hence no question arises of its demolition,” he told ThePrint.
Justice Kait had taken oath as the Chief Justice of Madhya Pradesh on 25 September.
There has been no renovation work carried out at the official residence of the chief justice, except for renovation of the bathroom, according to an official from law department.
The Bar Association’s letter came after its member advocate Ravindra Nath Tripathi alleged that Chief Justice Kait had got the temple at his official residence demolished.
Apart from an inquiry as well as criminal action,Tripathi has also sought Justice Kait’s recusal from hearing a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) seeking removal of temples from police stations.
A lawyer, according to Tripathi, has taken cue from Justice Kait’s action and moved the PIL seeking removal of all temples from police stations across Madhya Pradesh. “There is reason to believe that Honorable Justice is biased and may be ordering removal of all the temples,” he alleged.
In the letter written in Hindi, MP Bar Association president Dhanya Kumar Jain stated that the association received a complaint about “an ancient temple” being demolished inside the house of the chief justice. It has not only caused sadness to the advocates but also angered the people at large, he added.
The temple held a sacred place for many chief justices who would offer prayers before starting their day, the letter said, naming the likes of Justices Sharad Bobde, A. M. Khanwilkar and Hemant Gupta who would do this ritual.
“The temple inside the house of Chief Justice comes in the category of ancient temples, and to respect and safeguard it is the responsibility of the MP High Court Bar Association,” the letter states.
It further goes on to claim that former chief justices, who were Muslims, never had any objection to the shrine.
Over time, the letter added, the temple has been renovated using government funds as many of the chief justices and staffers staying in the bungalow have been followers of Sanatan Dharma.
“The temple ensures that these people do not have to go anywhere far away to offer their prayers and waste time in the process. And thereby, the temple is an important source of maintaining happiness, peace, and beauty in one’s lives. Demolishing the temple without the permission of the government or without passing any statutory order, is like insulting the majority Sanatan Dharma following the citizens of this country and it is also causing damage to government property,” read the letter signed by Jain
The complaint by Tripathi to the Bar Association was made on 22 December, more than a month after a division bench led by Chief Justice Kait on 5 November admitted a petition regarding the unauthorised construction of religious structures at public places including police stations.
Of the 1,259 police stations, over 800 had religious structures on their premises, which, the petitioner Om Prakash Yadav represented by lawyer Sateesh Verma argued, constitutes a misuse of government property and a violation of religious neutrality.
In September 2009, the Supreme Court had banned the unauthorised construction of any temple, church, mosque or gurudwara on public streets or spaces across the country.
Subsequently, Chief Justice Kait had ordered ‘status quo’ be maintained and sought a response from the MP government on the issue.
According to lawyer Suresh Verma, who is representing Yadav, the MP government, in its response, accused the petitioner of having an ulterior motive to harass the police and to gain publicity.
When the matter was heard 17 December, Chief Justice Kait remarked that the MP government’s report was “inadequate and lacked necessary details”. He then sought a comprehensive and factual report to be presented in the next seven days.
