Click to play videoMumbai: Thronged by commoners and celebrities alike, the Siddivinayak temple in Mumbai is a potential terror target.
The terror threat was one of the reasons why the Maharashtra government allowed the temple trust to construct a seven-foot-high wall around the premises.
However, there is one problem, the wall has been made by encroaching upon the road, making life difficult for local residents.
The residents have appealed to the Bombay High Court, which is now questioning the very need for a security wall.
Says member Takshashila Residents' Association, Shailendra Shroff, "The temple authorities and the government have been asked whether there could be any other security measure which can be put in place apart from the wall."
On Wednesday the court wanted to know:
- Why is this wall necessary and how good is it as security measure?
- Why does God have to be protected by man?
- If security is so important, why can't the the temple be relocated?
Ironically enough, the wall built for security reasons is itself endangering the temple's very existence.
The Bombay High Court is not ready to bend to the demands of the temple authorities and has not taken too kindly to the manner in which the government seems to have been pandering to the temple authorities' demands.
It has suggested that the temple authorities and the government think in terms of re-locating the temple, if it is such a soft terror target.
While the Supreme Court had passed an order in 2006 asking the wall to be demolished in three months, the Municipal Commissioner allegedly used special powers to change the map of the area by removing the road. That was the reason why residents were forced to appeal to the High Court once again.
The Court has now asked the Municipal Corporation to answer why the maps of the area were altered and and why the temple trust was still insisting on the wall.
The next hearing, on October 3, may decide if the wall will finally stay or be gone for good.
(With inputs from Vikas Srivastav in Mumbai)
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