The Bombay high court on Monday dismissed a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) challenging the construction of a jetty near the Janjira fort in Murud, a port city in Raigad district. The division bench comprising chief justice Devendra K Upadhyaya and justice Arif Doctor refused to entertain the PIL filed by local politician Mahesh Mohite, as he had neither named the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), nor made any representation or complaint to the authority before approaching the court.
Janjira fort is an archaeological monument situated on an oval shaped rock off the Arabian sea. In his petition, Mohite through advocate Amjith M Anandhan claimed that the construction of a 250-metre-long breakwater jetty near the Janjira jetty, positioned at the fort’s sea-facing entrance, was in contravention of the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains Act, 1958. The law restricts construction within 300 meters of a protected monument.
The petition also highlighted local fishermen’s concerns regarding their livelihood and the area’s tourism potential and contested the Maritime Board’s tender to DVP Infra Project Private Ltd for the construction of the jetty. However, the government pleader representing the state contended that construction of the jetty and allied services would enhance tourism and provide better access to the area for visitors.
The division bench questioned the absence of the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) as a party to the petition, as well as the petitioner’s standing as a politician rather than a member of the affected fishing community. Emphasising that the court was not a platform for political agendas, the bench said, “We are not providing a field to play politics. Why has (fishermen) society not filed a petition? You are not an office bearer or member. Why can’t society come?”
The court dismissed the petition and urged the affected fishing community to seek appropriate remedies under the law, saying, “Notwithstanding the dismissal of the petition, it is open for society, or any other fisherman or person affected in the vicinity to take up the cause before any forum or court as available.”