Jain temple demolition: BMC transfers ward officer as community protests
Mumbai, Apr 19 (PTI): The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) on Saturday transferred an assistant municipal commissioner after the demolition of a Jain temple in Vile Parle area of the city sparked a controversy.
Members of the Jain community took out a protest march over the issue earlier in the day.
Navnath Ghadge, who was in charge of the K-east ward, has been transferred with immediate effect, municipal commissioner Bhushan Gagrani told PTI.
A team of K-east ward on April 16 demolished a Jain temple or 'chaitalaya' located inside Neminath Cooperative Housing Society, claiming it to be an unauthorised structure.
A protest march was taken to the ward office on Saturday. Paresh Shah of the Maharashtra Gaushala Sangh claimed that more 20,000 people including religious leaders and Maharashtra minister Mangal Prasad Lodha, local BJP MLA Parag Alavani and a few other political leaders participated in the march.
A delegation of protesters submitted a memorandum of demands and had a two-hour-long meeting with Ghadge, he said.
"The entire Jain community is anguished by the BMC's action," said Shah, demanding that the civic body suspend the officer. The temple was demolished without giving the trustees time to respond, he claimed.
Shiv Sena (UBT) leader and city MLA Aaditya Thackeray said the BMC was being fully and directly controlled by the Chief Minister's Office and Urban Development Minister's office, suggesting that they were to blame for the incident.
The Urban Development department is headed by deputy CM Eknath Shinde who heads the rival Shiv Sena.
"Who was guardian minister (Lodha) protesting against? What he is doing is drama instead of saving the Derasar (temple) using his powers as guardian minister!
"He has an illegal office in the BMC itself, and has a huge experience of real estate and such cases. Instead of protecting the Derasar, now he is doing the drama of a protest. I hope everyone realises - the BJP belongs to nobody. It is the BJP govt that is running the BMC through the CM's office," Thackeray alleged.
MP and Mumbai Congress president Varsha Gaikwad, who participated in the protest march, claimed BMC officials demolished the temple without waiting for the court's ruling.
The idols of Jain Tirthankars and religious texts were also "insulted" during the action, she alleged, blaming the "bulldozer government of the BJP alliance" responsible for the "conspiracy."
She spoke to commissioner Gagrani who assured that a new temple will be built at the same place, she said.
Congress leader Vijay Wadettiwar accused the BJP government of "targeting the minorities". "It is wrong to demolish a structure without giving a proper notice. Action should be taken against the officials involved in this, " he said.
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Another North Goa nightclub sealed; Kejriwal says corruption led to fire tragedy
Panaji (PTI): As part of a crackdown against tourist establishments violating laws and safety norms in the aftermath of the Arpora fire tragedy, Goa authorities on Saturday sealed a renowned club at Vagator and revoked the fire department NOC of another club.
Cafe CO2 Goa, located on a cliff overlooking the Arabian Sea at Vagator beach in North Goa, was sealed. The move came two days after Goya Club, also in Vagator, was shut down for alleged violations of rules.
Elsewhere, campaigning for local body polls, AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal said the fire incident at Birch by Romeo Lane nightclub at Arpora, which claimed 25 lives on December 6, happened because the BJP government in the state was corrupt.
An inspection of Cafe CO2 Goa by a state government-appointed team revealed that the establishment, with a seating capacity of 250, did not possess a no-objection certificate (NOC) of the Fire and Emergency Services Department. The club, which sits atop Ozrant Cliff, also did not have structural stability, the team found.
The Fire and Emergency Services on Saturday also revoked the NOC issued to Diaz Pool Club and Bar at Anjuna as the fire extinguishers installed in the establishment were found to be inadequate, said divisional fire officer Shripad Gawas.
A notice was issued to Nitin Wadhwa, the partner of the club, he said in the order.
Campaigning at Chimbel village near Panaji in support of his party's Zilla Panchayat election candidate, Aam Aadmi Party leader Kejriwal said the nightclub fire at Arpora happened because of the "corruption of the Pramod Sawant-led state government."
"Why this fire incident happened? I read in the newspapers that the nightclub had no occupancy certificate, no building licence, no excise licence, no construction licence or trade licence. The entire club was illegal but still it was going on," he said.
"How could it go on? Couldn't Pramod Sawant or anyone else see it? I was told that hafta (bribe) was being paid," the former Delhi chief minister said.
A person can not work without bribing officials in the coastal state, Kejriwal said, alleging that officers, MLAs and even ministers are accepting bribes.
