Allahabad HC to hear Banke Bihari temple corridor case today

Mathura: The hearing on the construction of a corridor for Banke Bihari temple in Vrindavan would be held in the Allahabad High Court on Monday. A Public Interest Petition (PIL) filed by one Ananth Kumar Sharma and another from Mathura will be heard by the division bench of Chief Justice Preetinker Diwakar and Justice Ashutosh Srivastava.

In the earlier hearing of the matter, the petitioners alleged that the government was attempting to change the status and structure of the temple and Kunj gali of Vrindavan during the corridor's construction. They also apprehended that temples around Banke Bihari would be demolished during the construction process.

Earlier, the state government had informed court that it was setting up facilities for pilgrims adjacent to the Banke Bihari temple. Additional Advocate General Manish Goyal CSC Kunal Ravi had made it clear that the priority of the government will be to control the crowd and maintain law and order. On the orders of the High Court, the government presented a proposal to build a corridor by acquiring land near the temple.

The court stated that it is the government's responsibility to manage the crowd. During the hearing in Allahabad High Court, the government's counsel told that the crowd at the main gate of the temple and the surrounding areas would be controlled and appropriate steps would be taken in this regard. It will be the responsibility of the government to manage the arrangements at the temple and the crowd of devotees.

The 'sibayat' (head priest's) advocate Sanjay Goswami has already stated that they have no objection to the corridor proposal if the rights of the people associated with Banke Bihari Temple are not infringed upon.

The hearing was earlier scheduled on November 3 but it could not be held and the next date was fixed on November 6. On behalf of 'sibayat', a request was made before the High Court for ensuring security of the ancient shrine and to see to it that the mythological nature of Vrindavan is not tampered with.