Court directs MMRCL as community members fear damage to two fire temples

The Bombay High Court on Wednesday directed five directors of the Mumbai Metro Rail Corporation Ltd. (MMRCL) to grant a hearing to the Parsi community that has been opposing the alignment of the Mumbai Metro 3 project. Several Parsis and some high priests from two Parsi temples have been opposing drilling work for two tunnels for the Metro 3 line.

A Vacation Bench comprising Justices S.J. Kathawalla and A.S. Gadkari directed the MMRC board members to grant a hearing to two trusts that manage the concerned Parsi temples, the high priests, and some chosen representatives of the community.

Earlier this week, four Parsi high priests had filed a petition in the HC seeking, among other things, that the ongoing drilling work for the two tunnels near Azad Maidan be stopped till further orders from the court. The petitioners told the HC that MMRCL was making two tunnels near Azad Maidan as part of the Colaba-Bandra-SEEPZ corridor.

Danger to temples

As per the present plan, these tunnels will pass directly under two fire temples and Atash Behrams (sacred fires): one at the junction of Princess Street and the other at Kalbadevi. Both are heritage sites. The petitioners said the proposed work, in its current form, will lead to desecration of the holy fires, threaten the structural safety of the temple buildings, and the wells at the temples might run dry because of the tunnelling work.

The MMRC, however, told the HC that some high priests had met Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis before work began, and all issues were explained to them and their consent was obtained. However, the petitioners refuted this, saying they had been assured the temples wouldn’t be affected. The MMRC said none of the trustees of the two temples had objected to the work.

At this, the Bench said it was shameful that the trustees hadn’t approached the HC even when the community was raising its voice over an important matter. “It is shameful that the trustees haven’t approached the court when the community is crying foul. This is an important matter. If the trustees can’t take a stand, then they should resign.”

The petitioners sought that the MMRCL be prevented, till the next hearing, from carrying out any work that affects the two temples. The MMRCL sought to assure the court that there was no possibility of the drilling work reaching the boundary of the two temples by June 14, the next date of hearing.