KARACHI, Nov 3: The Sindh High Court on Saturday issued a notice to Sindh Excise and Taxation Minister Mukesh Chawla and the acting secretary of the Hindu Panchayat on a contempt of court application for willfully defying the court order regarding the smooth access to the Shri Laxmi Narayan Mandir, a Hindu temple believed to have been constructed about 200 years ago at the Native Jetty bridge.

A division bench, headed by Justice Maqbool Baqar, also appointed nazir of the court commissioner “to visit and inspect the subject premises and report to the court the status of the construction activity at the site” to ascertain what portions of the centuries-old temple have been demolished.

The contempt of court application against Minister Chawla and Satram Das, also known as Ravi Dawani of the Hindu Panchayat, was filed by a resident of the residential quarters on the temple premises, Kailash Wishram, who had initially filed a petition against the construction near the temple that blocked pilgrims’ access from the temple to the sea.

The petitioner, represented by Advocate Zain Jatoi, had impleaded the ports and shipping secretary, the Karachi Port Trust chairman, the Jackson station house officer and a private company that runs a food outlet under the Jinnah bridge as respondents. The provincial excise minister and the Panchayat secretary were later included in the list of respondents after the petitioner’s counsel informed the court that the two were directly involved in the construction on the premises of the temple.

On Oct 31, the court had ordered that access to the Mandir should not be blocked or hindered so that pilgrims of the minority community might carry out their religious rites according to their faith.

On Saturday, the petitioner moved the application seeking contempt of court proceedings against the provincial minister and Panchayat secretary for flouting court’s earlier order. The court had ordered: “All construction/addition and/or alteration shall be such that absolutely no obstacle, hindrance and/or difficulties caused to the pilgrims/visitors so that the religious rites according to the Hindu faith may be carried out/performed in the subject Mandir and the adjoining property.”

The petitioner submitted that Minister Chawla and Secretary Dawani erected concrete column in the middle of the staircase of the Mandir rending the staircase into the sea non-existent. He said that the upper part of the staircase was flattened to the level of the courtyard, as stone boulders had been put on the lower part of the staircase.

Moreover, the petitioner submitted that the alleged contemnors completely demolished the smallest of the three worshipping chambers, which was located next to the staircase.

He submitted that the provincial minister and the Panchayat secretary never appeared before the court, but they were
“personally supervising the systematic demolition of the Mandir in the garb of its renovation”.

The bench issued a notice to the alleged contemnors for Nov 7 and appointed court nazir for inspection of the site to ascertain what portions of the building had been demolished.

The court ordered that the commissioner’s fee, Rs15,000, shall be paid by the petitioner.

The bench also ordered that the commissioner take out photographs at the site so that the entire picture may be depicted before this court. “Till then, absolutely no construction activity shall be carried out which may not be in consonance with the consent order dated 31-10-2012, or which may adversely affect the basic character/feature of the building(s) on the subject premises,” ordered the court.

According to the petitioner, Hindus perform their religious rituals at the temple where access to the sea water is one of the essentials for the worship.

According to the Pakistan Hindu Council, the temple was constructed about 200 years ago and the festival of Raksha Bandhan (Nariyal Puja), Ganesh Chaturthi, i.e. birth anniversary of Shri Ganesh Deva, and every new moon night is celebrated here. It is a sacred place for performing death rituals, funerals and other religious rituals at the sea, the PHC says.

KARACHI, Nov 3: The Sindh High Court on Saturday issued a notice to Sindh Excise and Taxation Minister Mukesh Chawla and the acting secretary of the Hindu Panchayat on a contempt of court application for willfully defying the court order regarding the smooth access to the Shri Laxmi Narayan Mandir, a Hindu temple believed to have been constructed about 200 years ago at the Native Jetty bridge.
A division bench, headed by Justice Maqbool Baqar, also appointed nazir of the court commissioner “to visit and inspect the subject premises and report to the court the status of the construction activity at the site” to ascertain what portions of the centuries-old temple have been demolished.
The contempt of court application against Minister Chawla and Satram Das, also known as Ravi Dawani of the Hindu Panchayat, was filed by a resident of the residential quarters on the temple premises, Kailash Wishram, who had initially filed a petition against the construction near the temple that blocked pilgrims’ access from the temple to the sea.
The petitioner, represented by Advocate Zain Jatoi, had impleaded the ports and shipping secretary, the Karachi Port Trust chairman, the Jackson station house officer and a private company that runs a food outlet under the Jinnah bridge as respondents. The provincial excise minister and the Panchayat secretary were later included in the list of respondents after the petitioner’s counsel informed the court that the two were directly involved in the construction on the premises of the temple.
On Oct 31, the court had ordered that access to the Mandir should not be blocked or hindered so that pilgrims of the minority community might carry out their religious rites according to their faith.
On Saturday, the petitioner moved the application seeking contempt of court proceedings against the provincial minister and Panchayat secretary for flouting court’s earlier order. The court had ordered: “All construction/addition and/or alteration shall be such that absolutely no obstacle, hindrance and/or difficulties caused to the pilgrims/visitors so that the religious rites according to the Hindu faith may be carried out/performed in the subject Mandir and the adjoining property.”
The petitioner submitted that Minister Chawla and Secretary Dawani erected concrete column in the middle of the staircase of the Mandir rending the staircase into the sea non-existent. He said that the upper part of the staircase was flattened to the level of the courtyard, as stone boulders had been put on the lower part of the staircase.
Moreover, the petitioner submitted that the alleged contemnors completely demolished the smallest of the three worshipping chambers, which was located next to the staircase.
He submitted that the provincial minister and the Panchayat secretary never appeared before the court, but they were “personally supervising the systematic demolition of the Mandir in the garb of its renovation”.
The bench issued a notice to the alleged contemnors for Nov 7 and appointed court nazir for inspection of the site to ascertain what portions of the building had been demolished.
The court ordered that the commissioner’s fee, Rs15,000, shall be paid by the petitioner.
The bench also ordered that the commissioner take out photographs at the site so that the entire picture may be depicted before this court. “Till then, absolutely no construction activity shall be carried out which may not be in consonance with the consent order dated 31-10-2012, or which may adversely affect the basic character/feature of the building(s) on the subject premises,” ordered the court.
According to the petitioner, Hindus perform their religious rituals at the temple where access to the sea water is one of the essentials for the worship.
According to the Pakistan Hindu Council, the temple was constructed about 200 years ago and the festival of Raksha Bandhan (Nariyal Puja), Ganesh Chaturthi, i.e. birth anniversary of Shri Ganesh Deva, and every new moon night is celebrated here. It is a sacred place for performing death rituals, funerals and other religious rituals at the sea, the PHC says.