The Supreme Court on Monday declined to stay the Gujarat high court order asking the Modi government to provide financial aid for rebuilding of over 500 religious places, mainly mosques damaged during the 2002 riots, but gave the state an “option” to formulate a policy in this regard.
A bench of Justices K.S. Radhakrishnan and Dipak Mishra said since the Gujarat government was “contemplating” a policy on the issue on the lines of the SC’s 2009 direction issued for rebuilding of churches in Orissa damaged during the Kandhamal riots, there was no need to stay the HC’s order.
The “option” to formulate the policy was given to the Gujarat government after its additional advocate general Tushar Mehta said cited the SC order on Kandhamal riots in support of its appeal against the Gujarat high court order passed in February this year.
Besides, the bench said that it would take up the appeal of Gujarat government for final disposal on August 14 on urgent basis as it involved an important question of law on “constitutional tort”.
Mr Mehta while challenging the HC order on the question of “constitutional tort” said the jurisprudence for providing compensation under Article 226 of the Constitution, under which writ petitions on public issues are filed in HC, has not yet evolved in India.
Mr Mehta alleged that the HC had gone beyond its “jurisdiction” to pass an order asking the state to provide financial aid for rebuilding of religious places that too on a PIL filed by NGO while no individual or persons from the management of these religious places had ever approached the high court during past 10 years for claiming any damage.