Delhi High Court rejects plea to allow Chhath Puja at Yamuna banks

Pointing retired that a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) person had precocious taken a dip successful the stream and had fallen sick, addressing the petitioner, CJ Manmohan remarked orally, “Please support successful caput that if we let this you’re going to autumn sick.”

The Delhi government’s counsel Santosh Kumar Tripathi besides said “the stream is contaminated” and is getting further contaminated “day by day”, adding that 1000 spots person been designated crossed Delhi for carrying retired Chhath Puja rituals.

Addressing the petitioner, Justice Gedela said, “You cognize precise good what the concern is yet you’re insisting connected going there.”

While Purvanchal Nav Nirman Sansthan insisted it should beryllium allowed to cleanable the Yamuna riverbed, CJ Manmohan responded orally, “Who’s stopping you? Clean it.”

Expressing interest implicit the polluted authorities of the stream arsenic good arsenic governmental considerations for allowing unauthorised colonies connected the stream bank, CJ Manmohan besides remarked orally, “We’re contiguous discharging sewage successful Yamuna… Whether it’s concern sewage oregon our ain sewage. Look astatine the unauthorised colonies built astatine the banks. Their untreated sewage is going into this… The occupation is it is each successful our minds. Our caput tells america we volition get these votes, we volition miss the predetermination if they (unauthorised dwellers) stay implicit present and they proceed to pollute the Yamuna. We are dealing with a petition, 241 jhuggi dwellers are holding the full metropolis to ransom. Why? Because h2o is not being allowed to stroll into Yamuna.

“The authorities volition not springiness them a level oregon reallocation. They volition support them implicit determination truthful that the connection goes to slum dwellers that they (the government) are protecting their interests. All politicians volition spell determination and springiness agelong speeches…They volition not let the city’s h2o to travel into Yamuna due to the fact that if that flows and if those 241 get removed, they’ll person nary slogan to contention an election,” said CJ Manmohan.

“Today, our mindset needs to beryllium cleaned… We are not cleaning our minds… If you tin cleanable that, past you tin cleanable the Yamuna precise quickly. There is nary unanimity successful our views contiguous that we person to cleanable the Yamuna, unfortunately. That’s not the priority.”