The Delhi High Court on Monday said no spirituality can be attached to criminal activities while noting it as “unfortunate and painful” that a 108-foot Hanuman statue was allowed to be raised on public land’s pavement in the city.
A Bench of Acting Chief Justice Gita Mittal and Justice C. Hari Shankar asked the CBI to ensure that the matter is dealt with seriously and stringent action is taken against all the law breakers.
It had earlier directed the agency to probe how the famous Hanuman statue came to be built on public land in Karol Bagh.
The Bench said if prosecution is launched against any person, the court concerned shall ensure that the matter is dealt with expeditiously and the guilty are brought to book.
It said a “very unfortunate” stand was taken by land-owning agencies in this matter as none of them have come forward to say that the land belongs to them.
Monthly status report
It directed the CBI to file a monthly status report in the matter.
The court also appointed senior advocate Dayan Krishnan and advocate Gautam Narayan as amicus curiae in the matter.
It also asked the Delhi Development Authority to file a status report in the matter and listed it for further hearing on September 6.
The CBI had earlier claimed in the HC that the DDA and the North Delhi Municipal Corporation were not cooperating with its enquiry as to how the statue and a private two-wheeler dealership had encroached upon public land.