Maharashtra, BMC pass the buck on burial ground in Bandra

MUMBAI: Irked over the municipal corporation and the state government passing the buck over allotting land in Bandra Reclamation for a Sunni burial ground, the Bombay high court restrained the BMC from giving away the plot earlier reserved for the proposed cemetery to anyone else till further orders. A division bench of Chief Justice Manjula Chellur and Justice Mahesh Sonak was hearing a petition by Bandra resident Furqan Qureshi over the failure of the authorities to allot land for the community to bury their dead.
Block A is spread over 49 hectares in Bandra-Kurla Complex, comprising areas in the seafront area of Reclamation.
The BMC said the responsibility of allotting land was that of the government, while the state claimed that the civic body has to find a place. “We fail to understand the stand of both the state and municipal corporation, which are meant for welfare of the general public, as they keep shifting the responsibility to each other,” said the bench. “When the authorities are not able to identify an alternative location for the kabrastan in Bandra or Khar, at least they must be able to offer a plot in a nearby place. We direct the BMC (Special Planning Area Block A) not to allot the plot reserved earlier for the kabrastan to any third party for any other purpose till further orders.” The HC has scheduled the matter for further hearing to January 20.
Advocate Ashraf Shaikh, counsel for the petitioner, said the draft development plan 2016-34 mentions the reservation for a Muslim cemetery in Block A, but does not specify the area or provide any details. There are around 1.72 lakh Sunni Muslims residing in Bandra (W) and Khar (W), the PIL claimed. According to information obtained under the RTI Act by Qureshi, two persons from the community die every day. “Bodies are taken for final rituals and for burials to Juhu - Santacruz (W) or Bandra (E),” the PIL claimed, while urging the court to direct the authorities to allot a one-hectare land for a cemetery for the community.
In its affidavit, the BMC said it did not have any excess land for a cemetery in Bandra (W) or Khar (W). The BMC, which was given jurisdiction of Block A in 2015, said feasibility of the request for a cemetery will be examined during the planning process for the area. The BMC said the petitioner could approach the state with the plea for allotting land for the cemetery.