The Bombay High Court on Monday halted further demolition at the Hazrat Peer Mamu Bhanje Dargah in Thane. The court raised concerns about contradictory positions taken by forest authorities on whether an appeal against eviction was available to the shrine trust.
A bench led by Justice NJ Jamadar issued an interim order restraining officials from additional demolition work. It granted relief to the trust until August 10 while considering a petition against a July 9 eviction notice from the Assistant Conservator of Forest.
The notice required removal of alleged unauthorized structures on forest land within eight days or face demolition and cost recovery. The trust stated that forest officials had earlier told the court an appeal could be filed with the Range Forest Officer at Sanjay Gandhi National Park. Relying on that, the trust pursued the appeal after an earlier petition was dismissed.
Later, authorities issued a new notice claiming no appeal provision existed and that the prior statement was inadvertent, then began demolition. The trust’s counsel argued the sudden reversal left it without remedy. Forest department counsel said the trust missed a July 17 hearing, justifying the action.
The judge noted the shift in stance had placed the trust in difficulty after it followed earlier court representations. Notices were issued to the state government and forest authorities, with replies due by August 6. The case is listed for August 10, with interim protection continuing until then.
