SC asks Haji Ali Trust to remove encroachments around shrine by June 6

The Supreme Court on Tuesday asked the trust managing Mumbai's Haji Ali Dargah to remove encroachments within 500 square metres around the historic shrine failing which the Joint Task Force (JTF) constituted by the Bombay High Court would clear the area.

Appreciating the good work done by the trust managing the Dargah in pursuance to its April 13 order, the bench of Chief Justice Jagdish Singh Khehar, Justice Pinaki Chandra Ghose and Justice D.Y.Chandrachud said that if encroachers fail to move out on their own, then the JTF would come into action.

The court gave encroachers time till June 6 to vacate, failing which the JTF would take over the task of removing them, adding this would commence its operation on June 10 and complete it by June 30.

In the last hearing the court had restrained the JTF from removing the encroachments, leaving the task to the Trust.

Giving four weeks time to encroachers to move out, the court in its order said that it "hope and expect" that trust would persuade the encroachers to remove the encroachments.

"We place on record our appreciation the endeavour of the Trust in complying with our order and the undertaking given by it on April 13," the bench said.

By its April 13 order, the court had asked the Trust to remove all the encroachment around the mosque having the Dargah and had given it time till May 8 to do so.

The trust, had in the course of the last hearing, had told the court that the shrine, which came up in 1431, was spread over an area of 171 square metres and there were encroachments in the area around it.

The trust is managing the shrine since 1930.

The court said that the beautification plan for the area submitted by the Trust could be accepted by the municipal body as it is or modified or substituted by another plan but the municipal body may take the help of a known urban heritage architect for this purpose.

In the last hearing of the matter, the court had permitted Haji Ali Dargah Trust, draw a beautification architectural plan, covering the area used for access to the Haji Ali Dargah, and the surroundings area, which will become available, after the removal of the encroachments.

The court had asked the trust to submit the beautification plan for its consideration.

--IANS

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