The High Court of Bombay refused to allow the immersion of eco-friendly Ganpati idols in natural water bodies. The court ruled that individual rights cannot override the rights of a community. The court was hearing a petition challenging the Mumbai civic body's guidelines mandating that idols less than six feet in height must be immersed in artificial ponds.
A bench of acting Chief Justice Shree Chandrashekhar and Justice Aarti Sathe said the right to clean water is equated with a fundamental right.
"The right to clean air and water have attained the status of fundamental right of every citizen. It is well settled that when a court is faced with an issue regarding enforcement of individual rights against the fundamental rights of citizens and rights of community, hardship to individuals cannot override the larger issues involved," the HC said.
The court dismissed the petition filed by Sanjay Shirke seeking permission to immerse eco-friendly Ganpati idols in natural water bodies, including the historical Banganga talao (lake) in south Mumbai.
Shirke had challenged the Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) issued by the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation and a notification by the Maharashtra Pollution Control Board (MPCB) banning the immersion of eco-friendly idols in Banganga talao.
Banganga talao is a heritage structure protected under the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains Act, but the petition claimed that immersion of eco-friendly idols was permitted in the lake in the past.
Advocate General Birendra Saraf, however, argued that the petitioner has no fundamental right to immerse idols in Banganga, stressing it was a protected monument.
The court upheld the BMC's SOP and the pollution control board's decision, saying they were in the interest of the general public. The Central Pollution Control Board's guidelines prohibit the immersion of Plaster of Paris (PoP) idols in natural water bodies so as to avoid pollution. The Maharashtra government subsequently mandated that the idols less than six feet tall be immersed in artificial tanks, while taller ones could be immersed in natural water bodies.
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