Hunger strike to stop unauthorized construction by a church

Thane: An unauthorized garden has been developed in Sree Janaki Devi temple area in Pokharan-1 and 2, Thane by ‘Saint John the Baptist Church’ and ‘Little Flower School’ by reclaiming land. Shri. Anant Tare, a leader of Shiv Sena staged hunger strike along with a few devotees. The reason for such token hunger strike was that the unauthorized reclamation would flood the premises of the temple with sewage water; but the Government was paying no heed to the demands of Hindus.

A plot of land was reserved by Thane Municipal Corporation (TMC) near Sree Janaki Devi Temple for a play ground. As the ground was not developed, ‘Saint the Baptists Trust Church’ and ‘Little Flower’ developed a parking place, statue of Mother Mary and a garden by filling up the plot with soil. On 2 acres of land, the Trust has been running a fertilizer project which is harmful to health and can cause pollution.

Shri. Anant Tare said that it is a ‘kaccha’ road joining Pokharan 1 and 2 area and has been deliberately closed by fixing iron pipes. The filling up of land can result in flooding of the temple area with sewage water. A complaint has been lodged with TMC about 2 years and 4 months before but no action has been taken. The agitation is only for drawing TMC’s attention to the issue. If no action is taken within 15 days, the agitation will be intensified. A representation has also been given to the Municipal Commissioner in this regard.

(Is this supposed to be favoritism to Christianity or incapability of Thane Municipal Corporation ? – Editor)