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PWD asks police to lodge case against new makeshift temple at Chandni Chowk
The old temple, which was located on the pavement of the carriageway towards Red Fort, had been demolished by the North Delhi Municipal Corporation on the directions of the Delhi high court on January 3.
Leaders of three major political parties — the Aam Aadmi Party, the Bharatiya Janata Party and the Congress — on Saturday made a beeline for the new makeshift Hanuman temple that has come up on the central verge of Chandni Chowk main road, even as the Public Works Department (PWD) wrote to the Delhi Police asking them to take action against the construction.
The PWD in its complaint to the Delhi police, however, did not mention the word “temple” anywhere instead referring to it as a “prefabricated structure”.
“This is to inform you that last night (Thursday) some unknown person brought a prefabricated structure and placed at planter top in the median near Kucha Mahajani at Chandni Chowk road. In this regard it is requested to take necessary action at the earliest so that the project can be executed within the timeline,” the PWD complaint letter to the police said.
A police officer, who did not want to be named, said, “Legal action has already been initiated in the matter.”
Delhi government could not be reached for a comment on the issue despite repeated attempts.
The old temple, which was located on the pavement of the carriageway towards Red Fort, had been demolished by the North Delhi Municipal Corporation on the directions of the Delhi high court on January 3. The PWD in its complaint clearly mentioned that the structure has come up without any permission from any of the agencies executing the project.
Senior AAP leader Durgesh Pathak, AAP’s Chandni Chowk MLA Parlad Singh Sawhney and Delhi Congress vice president Mudit Agrawal and Delhi BJP spokesperson Praveen Shankar Kapoor visited the makeshift temple on Saturday and offered prayers at the temple.
On Saturday, senior AAP leader and party’s MCD in-charge Pathak visited the new temple and offered prayers along with locals. He said that the North Delhi Municipal Corporation had demolished this temple of “Lord Hanuman” but the people had re-built it with their faith.
“It is very sad that this temple of Sankat Mochan Lord Hanuman in Chandni Chowk was demolished. By doing so, the MCD played with the faith of devotees. But the devotees have re-built this temple. The AAP stands with devotees, and we have come here to pray before Lord Hanuman that he gives sanity to all,” Pathak said.
He also took potshots at the BJP-ruled civic bodies and said that the BJP has betrayed the people of Delhi during its 15-year tenure in the MCD.
Responding to Pathak’s allegations, Delhi BJP spokesperson Kapoor said that it is sad that AAP leader Durgesh Pathak has vitiated the atmosphere by giving a political statement while visiting the Hanuman mandir rebuilt by the locals of Chandni Chowk. “The original temple at Chandni Chowk was demolished as a part of Delhi government’s beautification plan on court’s order. Locals made several appeals to the government to save the original temple but they did nothing,” Shankar said.
Delhi Congress vice-president Mudit Aggarwal on Saturday too visited the newly built temple and trained guns at both the MCDs and the Delhi government for the temple’s demolition. “Both the Delhi government and the BJP considered the temple a hindrance and engaged in manipulating the public by hurling allegations at each other,” Aggarwal said.
