Vinoba Bhave’s building will not collapse, CJI told Prashant Bhushan – tell DM Banaras that I am going to hear the case myself

The Supreme Court has agreed to hear the case against the order to demolish a building of ‘Sarva Seva Sangh’, a society engaged in propagating Gandhian values. The Supreme Court has agreed to hear on July 10 the petition challenging the decision of the District Magistrate of Varanasi.

A bench of CJI DY Chandrachud and Justice PS Narasimha on Friday took cognizance of the arguments of senior advocate Prashant Bhushan and said that he can inform the District Magistrate that we have agreed to hear the petition on Monday and in the meantime the structure will not be demolished .

In 1948, Acharya Vinoba Bhave founded Sarva Seva Sangh

Prashant Bhushan had requested for an urgent hearing of the matter and a stay on the order to demolish the building. He said that Acharya Vinoba Bhave had established the Sarva Seva Sangh in 1948 to propagate the thoughts and philosophy of Mahatma Gandhi. Now the local administration is trying to demolish the building. The CJI said that we will list it for hearing on Monday, July 10.

The Sarv Sewa Sangh had earlier moved the Allahabad High Court challenging the Northern Railway’s notice to demolish structures built on a 12.90-acre plot in Varanasi. The organization said that it had purchased land for its campus in Pargana Dehat of Varanasi from the central government through three registered sale deeds in ‘1960, 1961 and 1970’.

The District Magistrate became active after the order of the High Court

The District Magistrate issued a notice regarding the demolition of the structure. The DM was empowered by the High Court to decide the dispute between the organization and the Northern Railway. The District Magistrate had said on June 26 that according to the revenue records this land belonged to the Railways.