Bhoomi poojan on secular Gujarat high court premises? PIL objects

An unusual PIL petition has been filed in the Gujarat high court opposing the 'bhoomi pujan' (foundation laying ceremony) performed according to Hindu rituals by the chief justice on the premises of the court.

When the PIL came up for hearing before the bench headed by chief justice SJ Mukhopadhya, it was referred to another bench of the high court which does not have the chief justice as member.

The petitioner, Rajesh Solanki, has drawn attention to the 'non-secular action' of the state government and the Gujarat high court. Solanki, who appeared before the bench himself, has objected to the bhoomi poojan ceremony held on Gujarat high court premises during the golden jubilee function in May last year.

He claimed that the Gujarat governor, the chief justice and other judges of the high court had all taken part in the ceremony.

The governor and the chief justice had performed the pooja as per Hindu rituals during the ceremony. Solanki has also annexed a photograph with his petition showing both the governor and the chief justice performing the bhoomi poojan.

Solanki has stated in his petition that, as laid down in Article 12 of the Constitution, the state is required to refrain from getting associated with any religious faith.

"The pooja symbolises that the state is associated with and recognizes Hinduism as the state religion," the petition said. The state government, the high court administration and the Gujarat High Court Advocates Association (GHCAA) have also been made respondents in the case.

The Gujarat high court has prepared an expansion plan for the court building to provide the high court with more rooms and facilities.

A huge stretch of land has been acquired by the state government to build advanced infrastructure for the court. The bhoomi poojan was held before start of the construction work. As per Hindu tradition, bhoomi poojan is performed before starting any kind of construction work.