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Apex court asks Gujarat HC to reconsider Tushar Gandhi’s plea against Sabarmati redevelopment
The order was passed on an appeal filed by Gandhi against a November 25 order passed by the high court which went by an assurance given by the top law officer of the state that the Ashram and the ambience around it will not be disturbed.
The Supreme Court on Friday set aside a Gujarat high court order dismissing a PIL filed by social activist and Mahatma Gandhi’s great grandson Tushar Gandhi challenging the Gujarat government’s Sabarmati Ashram redevelopment project and asked the high court to give a fresh hearing to the case after calling for a comprehensive response from the state government.
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The order was passed on an appeal filed by Gandhi against a November 25 order passed by the high court which went by an assurance given by the top law officer of the state that the Ashram and the ambience around it will not be disturbed. No response was called from the Gujarat government on this issue and this was one factor that weighed with the top court in remitting the matter back for the high court’s consideration.
A bench of justices Dhananjaya Y Chandrachud and Surya Kant said, “An undertaking has been recorded by the high court. It has not called for a comprehensive affidavit from the Gujarat government before disposing the petition. We are of the considered view that it would be appropriate for the high court to decide upon the issues raised in the petition after furnishing an opportunity to the Gujarat government to file a comprehensive affidavit dealing with all aspects.”
Gandhi was represented in the top court by senior advocate Indira Jaising who said that the high court order suffered an error as it did not hear even the Sabarmati Ashram Preservation and Memorial Trust (SAPMT) which is a crucial stakeholder in the project undertaken by the state.
“Our intention is not to hold up the project but I request that the trustees should be heard as they have a mandate to preserve the memory of the Mahatma and Gandhian ethos,” Jaising said seeking a stay on the high court order and an expeditious hearing by the high court.
The bench said, “Without enquiring into the merits of the case, we set aside the order of the high court. We clarify that this Court has not entered into the merits of the matter raised in the petition or the legality of such material to be placed by the state before the high court.”
The Gujarat government was represented in the proceedings by solicitor general (SG) Tushar Mehta who termed the apprehensions of the petitioner “unfounded” and based on “uninformed facts”. “It is being unfair to the high court that the petitioner should suggest how the matter is to be conducted and to whom notice be issued.” He agreed to join the petitioners in making a request for expediting the hearing and told the Court that the SAPMT is a crucial stakeholder in the redevelopment plan.
The petitioner, the grandson of Mahatma Gandhi’s third son Mani Lal, had challenged the state government’s ₹1,200 crore Gandhi Ashram Memorial and Precinct Development Project announced on March 5, 2021 on the ground that the constitution of Gandhi Smarak Nidhi states that the Ashram and memorials should be kept away from any kind of government and political influences.
Before the high court, the state assured that it would not touch the three key attractions – Gandhi Ashram, museum and Magan Niwas – situated in the core one-acre area and stated further that the redevelopment would take place in the 55-acre adjoining the main Ashram.
The Solicitor General told the top court that around the Ashram, areas have been encroached and multi-storey buildings have come up that need to be removed. “These are houses which look like slums and are in a dilapidated condition. These people have been offered financial remuneration and alternate accommodation which many have accepted,” Mehta said.
The Sabarmati Ashram project is being designed by HCP Design, Planning and Management Private Limited, the same agency which has designed the Central Vista Redevelopment project. It envisages restoring the ambience of the Ashram, as it existed a century back during Mahatma Gandhi’s time.
The petition filed by Gandhi through advocate Aparna Bhat said, “The petitioner is apprehensive that in the nature of redevelopment and over-sized involvement of the government authorities in the conception and execution of the said project, the ashram may lose the Gandhian ethos that has been painstakingly preserved by the Trust.”
