HC panel discusses shelter home issues

NAGPUR: The panel constituted by the Nagpur bench of Bombay High Court for utilizing amount deposited by trusts managing illegal religious structures conducted its first meeting where office-bearers from many government shelter homes in the city were invited.

According to lawyers, engaged in the case against such structures, the panel members led by government pleader Sumant Deopujari discussed various problems faced by office-bearers in running those shelter homes. High Court Bar Association (HCBA) vice-president Gauri Venkatraman and assistant government pleader Kalyani Marpakwar Deshpande are other members appointed on the panel.

The office-bearers listed out a host of grievances, right from lack of funds to inadequate lodging and boarding facilities for the children. The panel members then asked them to come out with a proper list of their requirements along with the estimates. The office-bearers were further told to inform other such shelter homes in the region about the court’s orders as they were for entire Vidarbha.

Expressing concern over poor conditions of shelter-cum-observation homes, a division bench comprising justices Bhushan Dharmadhikari and Zaka Haq, on August 10, had directed to donate amount collected from religious structures for betterment of living conditions and education of children, maintained under the Juvenile Justice Act, 2015.

The judges had asked 677 objectors to deposit Rs50,000 each with its registry to prove their bona fides. Of them, 274 had completed the formalities by August 10. The late comers were told to shell out Rs60,000 by August 21, if they want to be heard by the court in next hearing slated on August 23.

Hailing HC’s decision, the lawyers said the amount received from the trusts would run into crores which would ultimately benefit the destitute children in shelter homes.

During the last hearing, the Nagpur Municipal Corporation (NMC) informed that it had received 864 more objections from those who constructed religious structures in the city without requisite sanctioned plans and building permit. These are in addition to 677 objections received till July 18, which took total number of objectors to over 1,500.