Bandra cemetery case: Court snubs MLA, ex-corporator

MUMBAI: The Bombay high court on Tuesday snubbed the MLA and a former corporator from Bandra when they sought to intervene in a public interest litigation that seeks allotment of land for a cemetery for Sunni Muslims.
The court asked MLA Ashish Shelar, who is also BJP city chief, and former corporator Rahbar Khan where they were “all this while” and why they had come only now after the PIL had been filed.The court also asked if they sought to intervene in the PIL with an eye on elections. “I have to remove all these unnecessary nuisance. I don’t require your assistance,” said the senior judge on the division bench, while hearing a PIL by a builder, Furqan Qureshi, urging that the BMC allot one hectare for a qabrastan in H-west ward.
Shelar’s advocate said the court had earlier said that he could intervene to help. The bench said, “What are you doing being in the government? You could have done it without coming here.” When the advocate replied that his client wants to place on record minutes of a meeting with the government, the judges said Shelar must give it to the petitioner, who will bring it on record. “The matter is only between the petitioner and the court. You have enough opportunity. Go do your work in the assembly,” the HC said.
During the previous hearing, the HC had sought an undertaking from BMC on the land allotment after it said it proposes to do so at Reclamation. When senior advocate Anil Sakhare, appearing for BMC, informed the court on Tuesday that the land belongs to Mhada, the bench asked the petitioner to make Mhada a party so that it can respond. —Rosy Sequeira