New Delhi: Referring to a petitioner who challenged the state government’s move to carry on demolitions around Sri Jagannath Temple at Puri, the Supreme Court Tuesday made a cryptic observation in this regard, saying, “If he is happy we will feel you have succeeded.”
An SC three-judge bench comprising Justices Arun Mishra, MR Shah and BR Gavai observed that the state government should not take a rigid stand and should look into grievances of people and take all parties into confidence while conducting the demolition drive in the vicinity of Sri Jagannath Temple.
“We are not saying that you are doing this wrongly but you have to take everybody into confidence,” the bench said in an oral observation.
The apex court also asked the advocate general of Odisha to take suggestions of Debasis Mishra of Intercontinental Association of Lawyers, who had filed petitions in the apex court seeking a stay on the demolition drive launched by the state government, to resolve the issues arising in Puri.
Earlier, Mishra had pleaded that the demolition drive was going on illegally without following land accusation policy and it should be stopped. However, the court had disposed of the petition after the state government’s submission that it has taken all parties into confidence and would follow the proper course of law whenever there is a need for consent.
Significantly, amicus curiae Ranjeet Kumar sought two weeks time from the court to submit a report on the state government’s eviction drive. Kumar along with Solicitor General Tussar Mehta had visited Puri following a direction of the apex court to check the status of demolition and submit a report in the court.
The apex court granted two weeks time to the amicus curie and posted the matter for hearing October 3.