Orders status quo amid concerns over demolition
The Bombay High Court on Friday sought to know from the Urban Development Department (UDD) of Maharashtra government by when the heritage status will be granted to the residence of Hindutva ideologue VD Savarkar, Savarkar Sadan, situated at Shivaji Park area of Central Mumbai.
The court passed an order while hearing a PIL by a public charitable trust called Abhinav Bharat Congress, seeking heritage status for the premises and a directive to declare the building 'monument of national importance' and formulate special compensation policy for its inhabitants.
The court issued notices to respondent authorities seeking their response to the PIL during next hearing on June 13 and ordered that till the said date the status of the property shall not be changed.
A division bench of Justices Atul S Chandurkar and Neela K Gokhale was hearing the PIL by the Trust filed through its co-founder and authorised representative, Professor Pankaj Phadnis, who resides in the building, seeking directive to the state UDD to issue a notification so as to include the 'Savarkar Sadan' property in the heritage list in terms of final recommendation of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) to Principal Secretary UDD through letter dated August 30, 2010.
The petitioner contended that the Municipal Architect (Development Plan) of the BMC on January 20, 2012, too, had written to the UDD to make such a recommendation for heritage status to the said property.
The petitioner claimed that after an inaction of more than ten years, the Chief Minister's Office on February 1, 2025 forwarded to UDD an email sent by the petitioner raising grievances, requiring the steps to be taken and enquiries to be made in the matter.
The PIL alleged 'apathy' by the state government of 'sitting on recommendation to give the site a heritage status for fifteen years' and apprehended that the same has left the building vulnerable to demolition or redevelopment. It said that while Jinnah House is granted heritage status, Savarkar Sadan has remained unnotified despite having historical relevance.
Phadnis, citing a news report of earlier this month, apprehended that prior to such heritage status being bestowed to the said property, it is likely to be demolished.
After hearing the petitioner, the bench issued notices to respondents UDD, BMC, Mumbai Police and Union Ministry of Culture seeking their responses during the next hearing.
'Instructions be obtained from the first respondent (UDD) as regards the time within which the grant of heritage status to the aforesaid premises would be undertaken. Till the returnable date, the status of the said property shall not be changed and the position as prevailing today shall be maintained,' the bench noted in the order.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
News18
7 hours ago
- News18
Patch-Up Buzz Grows As Thackeray Cousins Meet Abroad For Talks: Sources
Last Updated: The Thackeray brothers were on a foreign tour in April when they both held discussions on a possible alliance ahead of the BMC polls. Thackeray cousins alliance: Amid the ongoing speculations over a possible tie-up between Shiv Sena (UBT) and MNS, the estranged cousins Uddhav Thackeray and Raj Thackeray reportedly met abroad last month and held discussions about the alliance, sources said. The Thackeray brothers were on a foreign tour in April when they both held discussions on a possible alliance ahead of the BMC polls. For the past few days, speculations have been rife about a possible alliance between the Uddhav and Raj Thackeray after they recently hinted at the possibility of setting aside past differences and working together for the people of Maharashtra, nearly two decades after parting ways. Recently, addressing the reporters, the former Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray said there was no confusion among the workers of either party. 'There is no confusion in our and our Shiv Sainiks' hearts. There is no confusion in his (MNS) mind either. We will not give any message, we will give the news directly," Uddhav said. Meanwhile, Raj Thackeray hinted towards joining hands with his cousin brother for the interest of the Marathi manoos (Marathi-speaking people). Notably, the MNS in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections supported the BJP in Maharashtra, but six months later, both parties fought the state Assembly polls separately. Raj Thackeray left the undivided Shiv Sena in 2005 when he resigned from the party and announced MNS on March 9, 2006 in Mumbai. Since then, their political paths were different. The last such attempt was made during the 2017 Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) elections, when talks were initiated but failed to gain traction from Uddhav. He declined to meet the emissary sent by Raj, insisting on a meeting with his deputies instead. Currently, both Shiv Sena UBT and MNS are fighting for political survival. The MNS faces a more precarious situation, having struggled to secure significant support from the people of Maharashtra in general and assembly elections since 2014. First Published:
Scroll.in
10 hours ago
- Scroll.in
Complainant in Sharmishta Panoli case arrested for allegedly hurting religious sentiments
The Kolkata Police on Monday arrested Wajahat Khan Qadri, the man whose complaint led to the arrest of 22-year-old law student Sharmishta Panoli, for posting allegedly 'malicious and inflammatory' remarks on social media, The Indian Express reported. Qadri, who was allegedly absconding since June 1, was found in a flat in the city's Amherst Street area, PTI quoted unidentified police officers as saying. He will be produced before a court on Tuesday, The Indian Express reported. A complaint had been registered against him on June 5. He was booked under the same sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita as Panoli: promoting enmity between different groups, deliberate and malicious acts intended to outrage the religious feelings of any class of citizens, intentional insult with the intent to provoke a breach of peace and statements that incite public mischief, The Indian Express had quoted an unidentified police officer as saying earlier. Panoli, a fourth-year business and law student at a Pune university, was arrested by the Kolkata Police in Gurugram on May 30 for her remarks about Prophet Muhammad on social media. She deleted the post later and issued an apology on X. A case was filed against Panoli based on Qadri's complaints on May 15. An arrest warrant had been issued against her on May 17, after which she was arrested from Gurugram, brought to Kolkata on a transit remand and remanded to judicial custody till June 13. The Calcutta High Court on June 5 granted interim bail to the 22-year-old law student. Following Panoli's arrest, at least five complaints were filed against Qadri in West Bengal, including two at the Garden Reach Police Station, for alleged hate speech and derogatory remarks on social media that hurt religious sentiments. Qadri had allegedly demanded action against Panoli on social media and later celebrated her arrest. The first complaint against Qadri was filed by a Hindutva outfit Shri Ram Swabhiman Parishad on June 2. The outfit alleged that his posts promoted enmity between religious groups and demanded his arrest for hurting 'Hindu sentiments'. Several complaints had also been filed against Qadri in different parts of the country, including Mumbai, Delhi and Assam, for alleged hate speech and making derogatory remarks against religious deities on social media. In Assam, Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma had said that an FIR was filed against the Qadri for allegedly making 'unacceptable comments against Devi Maa Kamakhya', The Indian Express reported. A three-member team of the Assam Police had earlier visited the area where Qadri lives in Kolkata's Garden Reach.
Scroll.in
11 hours ago
- Scroll.in
Bombay HC overturns rustication of Pune student arrested over post about Operation Sindoor
The Bombay High Court on Monday overturned the decision of an engineering college in Pune to rusticate a 19-year-old student who was arrested in May over an allegedly objectionable social media post about Operation Sindoor, Bar and Bench reported. A bench of Justices MS Karnik and NR Borkar set aside the decision after finding that the student had not been heard before the rustication order was passed. The court, however, granted the college liberty to pass a fresh order after hearing the student, the legal news outlet reported. The 19-year-old is a second-year information technology student at Sinhgad Academy of Engineering, a private college affiliated to Savitribai Phule Pune University. On May 7, she had allegedly reposted material on Instagram from an account that criticised the Indian government. The post was related to military tensions between India and Pakistan after Operation Sindoor. After receiving threats online, she had deleted the post and apologised. However, following protests against her post, she was arrested on May 9. She was rusticated by the college on the same day. On May 27, a division bench of Justices Gauri Godse and Somasekhar Sundaresan criticised the 19-year-old's college for rusticating her for the social media post, saying that educational institutes need to help students rather than turn them into criminals. The High Court had also criticised the Maharashtra government for arresting the student. It had directed the student's counsel to file a bail petition, adding that it would be granted immediately. She was granted bail on May 27. The bench had also directed that the student not be summoned by the police during her exams and barred her from leaving Maharashtra without permission. It had added that she had missed her May 24 and May 27 papers while in custody, and allowed her to approach university authorities regarding those exams. The police had been instructed to provide her security during the exam and the college was given the option to arrange separate seating if needed.
