India News | Court Issues Notice on Case Pertaining to Illegal Constructions in Mansa Devi Temple
Get latest articles and stories on India at LatestLY. The Uttarakhand High Court has issued a notice to the state government, forest department, Municipal Corporation of Haridwar, and Secretary of Niranjani Akhara in a case pertaining to illegal construction in Mansa Devi temple, Haridwar.
Nainital, Nov 10 (PTI) The Uttarakhand High Court has issued a notice to the state government, forest department, Municipal Corporation of Haridwar, and Secretary of Niranjani Akhara in a case pertaining to illegal construction in Mansa Devi temple, Haridwar.
Hearing a PIL in the case, a division bench of Chief Justice RS Chauhan and Justice NS Dhanik directed the respondents to file a reply within four weeks.
Also Read | Bengaluru Shocker: Scolded for Drinking on Duty, Guard Kills Flat Owner.
Ramesh Chandra Sharma, a resident of Haridwar, had filed a PIL in the High Court, saying that Mansa Devi temple was opened for the public by the British in 1940.
After that, a woman named Saraswati Devi started living in this temple.
At the age of 82, Saraswati Devi made a will in the interest of some people of Haridwar.
However, the forest department, which had rights over this land had not made any lease in favour of Saraswati Devi.
The petition said after some time, the secretary of Niranjani Akhara, Mahendra Giri, made a fake document and declared it a trust.
Thirty rooms, godowns, shops and storehouses were built by the Akhara on the land, which the Forest department had given for the temple.
Apart from this, Giri also occupied the land of the reserve forest and constructed shops.
The PIL claimed that due to construction in the premises, the possibility of landslides has increased in this area.
The PIL said that scientific survey of this area should be done and everything illegally constructed should be demolished.
(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)