Delhi High Court directs MoHUA to look into allegations of encroachment, illegal activities in Christian graveyards

Three petitioners, Cheryl Betsy Matthew, Aradhana Singh and Khushboo George, who are advocates practising successful the territory courts of Delhi, moved the precocious tribunal highlighting instances of “illegal exhumation of mortal remains, unauthorised body-doubling, encroachment and the unwarranted merchantability of burial spaces”.

The petitioners had approached the precocious tribunal successful October aft respective representations and complaints to the section Delhi authorities were not acted upon.

In their petition, taken up earlier the seat of Chief Justice Manmohan and Justice Manmeet Pritam Singh Arora connected Friday and Thursday, it was besides submitted that graveyard committees, liable for owning/administering graveyards, “charge exorbitant amounts of wealth for burial, for the onshore and services which travel specified burial.” The petition alleges that the committee aft allotting burial plots to families past “arbitrarily and without consent of the bereaved household merchantability the burial crippled oregon make 3rd enactment interests, exhume bodies, immoderate buried conscionable 5 months ago, successful the sanction of assemblage doubling, and enforce that ceremonial services beryllium taken from their committees only.”

Submitting that graveyards are nationalist premises arsenic understood nether The Public Premises (Eviction of Unauthorised Occupants) Act, 1971, the petitioners submitted that the property serviceman has the rights vested successful him to clasp an enquiry into matters oregon complaints pertaining to amerciable encroachment. The petitioners person besides submitted that civic authorities of the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) and the New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) excessively are empowered to enactment connected complaints of encroachment.

The petitioners submitted, “State Authorities and Municipal Bodies person grossly and successful a bland manner failed to support Christian burial grounds from encroachments, amerciable income and misuse by not acting connected complaints, specified hold successful enactment is simply a usurpation of the Right to Practice Religion freely.”

Submitting that determination are presently 2 large committees, namely the Delhi Cemeteries Committee and the Indian Christian Cemetery Committee, which unneurotic administer six graveyards, the petitioners person alleged that “general stores and pharmaceuticals basal successful afloat glory and honour, crowding the cemeteries’ bounds.”

The petition besides alleged that “sale successful parts of burial grounds to businesses and lodging residences, erstwhile this is strictly against instrumentality and order”, is being undertaken “to siphon disconnected unaccounted colossal amounts of money.”