From Our Bureau
NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Wednesday fixed a hearing on March 9 on BJP MP Dr Subramanian Swamy digging up his old pending PIL for directions to the Centre to declare the “Ram Sethu”, a bridge in disuse between Rameswaram island of Tamil Nadu and Mannar island of Sri Lanka, as a national heritage monument.
Dr Swamy had mentioned the matter for urgent hearing on April 8 last year as well. He mentioned it on Wednesday before a Bench headed by Chief Justice of India N V Ramana, that also comprised Justices A S Bopanna and Hima Kohli, noting that his petition has been kept hanging for the last many months.
He noted that the top court had said in January 2020 to consider his plea after three months, but nothing happened. He said the Centre has accepted the existence of Ram Sethu and even then union minister concerned had called a meeting in 2017 to consider his demand but nothing happened subsequently.
Dr Swamy had raised the issue in his PIL against the controversial Sethusamudram Ship Channel project, initiated by the UPA-I government. In 2007, the Supreme Court had stayed work on the project. The Centre had then said it was willing to consider the socio-economic disadvantages of the project and explore another route for the shipping channel, without damaging the Ram Sethu.
The Sethusamudram shipping channel project has been facing protests from political parties, environmentalists and certain Hindu religious groups. The project envisages a 830km long deep water channel, linking Mannar with Palk Strait, by extensive dredging and removal of limestone shoals on which the ancient bridge was built and which is now under disuse.
