Think of living people: HC on plea for graveyards

THE PLEA SAID THERE WAS A LACK OF SPACE A BASIC RIGHT SUCH AS A BURIAL GROUND IN THE CAPITAL, PARTICULARLY FOR THE CHRISTIAN COMMUNITY

NEWDELHI: The Delhi High Court on Friday dismissed a plea that sought directions to the Delhi government to increase space for graveyards and immediately allot land on a priority basis for the purpose.

Expressing displeasure, a bench of acting chief Justice Gita Mittal and Justice C Hari Shankar said that instead of filing such petitions, the petitioner should file PILS for homeless people.

“Have you done a study? How many homeless people are living in Delhi? You must have filed some public Interest litigation for the homeless. You are looking for homes for dead people. You want shelter for the dead. How many people died 10 years ago i n Delhi? Have you seen the decision taken by the Wakf board,” it asked the petitioner.

The bench asked the petitioner, advocate Shashwat Bhardwaj, about a practice in Saudi Arabia where burial grounds are not built. It asked the petitioner to do something for the living people rather than the dead.

“You want us to put more space for graveyards. Do something for the living people. Where do we create the land? We want land for hospitals, schools, colleges, etc,” it said, while seek- ing to know if the petitioner had sent any representation to the Delhi government.

The plea said there was a lack of space a basic right such as a burial ground in the Capital, particularly for the Christian community.

It had sought directions to the Delhi government to set up a committee to conduct a study on the available space in the cemeteries in Delhi and to make necessary arrangements to provide an amicable solution to the growing lack of burial space to the members of the Christian community.