Bombay HC decision on Kanjurmarg plot unfortunate; courts intervene in anything these days: Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut

A day after the Bombay high court (HC) stayed the transfer of land and Mumbai Metro car depot work at Kanjurmarg, Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut termed the decision

A day after the Bombay high court (HC) stayed the transfer of land and Mumbai Metro car depot work at Kanjurmarg, Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut termed the decision “unfortunate” and said that the courts enter into any issues nowadays. Without naming the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), the Sena chief spokesperson said that the Opposition had politicised the matter and the court should not enter it.

Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut. (HT PHOTO)

“The Opposition has politicised this issue, and the court should not enter into these issues. The [Kanjurmarg] land belongs to Maharashtra; where did these saltpan workers come from? The courts intervene in anything these days. The upper court grants bail to a murder accused man, bypassing the lower court. The government is termed ‘illegal’ when it takes action against unauthorised constructions. We have never seen such a judicial system,” Raut said while addressing media persons in Mumbai.

The Sena leader added that the Mumbai Metro-3 project is for the good of the people, and pointed out that politicians are not going to build bungalows and farmhouses on the Kanjurmarg plot. “No politician is going to construct their bungalow or farmhouse on the Kanjurmarg land. This is a matter of development of Mumbai, Maharashtra and eventually of the country. It is unfortunate that such a decision has come in this case,” the Rajya Sabha member said.

The BJP-led Central government and the Sena-led state government are locked in a tussle over the relocation of the Metro-3 car depot to Kanjurmarg. The previous state government led by the BJP had planned it at Aarey Milk Colony in Goregaon, which was opposed by environmentalists. On taking charge as chief minister (CM), Uddhav Thackeray last year stayed work on the depot at Aarey and appointed a panel to suggest possible alternative sites for the depot.

“People now have doubts in their minds whether such decisions [on the car shed project] are coming because there is no BJP government in Maharashtra,” Raut alleged.

He claimed that the former Devendra Fadnavis-led government wanted to construct homes for police and weaker sections on the Kanjurmarg plot. “That means the land belongs to the [state] government, doesn’t it?” he asked. “It seems there is some conspiracy to see that the Maharashtra government is not allowed to carry out work in the interest of the people or development,” Raut said.