LI NETWORK
The Delhi High Court has said that authorities like the Delhi Development Authority (DDA) are bound to make sure that places of worship are not created on public land by fraudulent persons through invasion.
Justice Prathiba M Singh conveyed “grave concern” over encroachment of public land “under the shelter of a place of worship”, saying it has been seen in a large number of cases that people claim rights over government land in the name of temples or other places of worship.
The court said:
“Such attempts by unscrupulous parties ought to be discouraged, in as much as the occupants, under the garb of a place of worship, turn the land into a completely unplanned encroachment by hundreds of people.”
“The authorities have an obligation to ensure that in public land, places of worship are not created in this manner. Moreover, in the present case, an infrastructure project is being completely crippled due to the pendency of this litigation. This would be contrary to even public interest.”
“This trend has been repeatedly frowned upon by the Supreme Court and other courts,” the bench said while dismissing a suit seeking to refrain the Delhi Development Authority (DDA) from demolishing temples at New Patel Nagar.
Justice Singh observed that the disputed land was a public land and the plaintiff was not qualified for any relief and imposed a cost of Rs 1 lakh on him to be deposited with the High Court of Delhi (Middle Income Group) Legal Aid Society.