October 1 2009
DNA
Law
above all
By ruling that religious
places of worship will no longer be allowed to come up on public land, the
Supreme Court has set to rest a problem which has been an urban scourge
for some years now. No city is immune to these impromptu shrines that come
up on the street and soon enough become permanent fixtures. This
particular case came up after the Gujarat government ordered the
demolition of all illegal shrines in 2006, which was subsequently upheld
by the Gujarat high court. The Union government felt that this decision
would create some religious turmoil and the matter reached the Supreme
Court.
While there are no studies to show how much public land has been
encroached upon by such shrines, by empirical evidence we know that they
can be found all over. In most cases they are a nuisance because of the
huge crowds they attract. Because they are usually in the middle of the
road, traffic is also affected. There is also the general principal of
hijacking government or civic owned property. A kind of mutually
beneficial racket flourishes that enriches not only the custodians of
these shrines but also local officials. The authorities have so far been
slow or reluctant to take action against them as anything religious in
India comes with the potential for unpleasant explosions.
The apex court however has put public good before public sentiment which
is commendable. The ruling says that not only will shrines no longer be
allowed on public land but state governments can also decide what to do
with existing shrines. This opens the door for clearing up of public land.
Most often, these shrines start small — a stone under a tree — and then
before anyone even realises it, a massive structure takes over. By
applying the order to shrines of all religions, the apex court has also
pre-empted all arguments on discrimination. All faiths will be treated
equally — a fine sign, it could be said, of secularism, but more than
that, the rule of law at work.
It may appear a little odd that such a matter even had to reach the
Supreme Court. The argument over illegal structures on public land should
begin and end at the municipal level. It is the inefficiency and often the
complicity of the local authorities that allows these shrines to come up
and then to flourish. The Gujarat government did well to defend its
decision and the apex court has done the executive's work once again.