KOCHI: Alignment of a national highway need not be changed to save religious institutions from land acquisition, the high court has held.
Justice PV Kunhikrishnan said in the judgment, “No specific mala fides are alleged in these writ petitions against the National Highway authorities for adopting the present alignment. Whether there is a house building erected on the proposed alignment in question or that there is a temple or a mosque or grave, which will be affected by the acquisition is not a ground for dropping acquisition proceedings for a public purpose. Of course, the State Government requested the authorities to avoid religious institutions while acquiring land as per NH Act, 1956. This is only a request to avoid religious institutions, wherever it is possible. I think the National Highway authorities accepted that recommendation in its spirit and done their level best to avoid religious institutions. Unless there is patent illegality or mala fides, this Court is not in a position to interfere with an alignment finalized by the National Highway Authority. Therefore, I am not in a position to accept the contentions of the petitioners in these writ petitions.”
Stressing that national highways of sufficient width and straight roads are required, the court quoted American art critic Dave Hickey, who said “Beauty is and always will be blue skies and open highway.”
Further, the court quoted lines from a 1975 song by Malayali lyricist Sreekumaran Thampi titled ‘Mannilum vinnilum’ to say that God exists everywhere and added that God would forgive if religious institutions are affected by highway development.
“For the development of the National Highway, if the religious institutions are affected, God will forgive us. God will protect the petitioners, the authorities, and also the author of this judgment. God will be with us,” the judgment said.
A batch of petitions alleging that alignment of the NH was changed to save religious structures during land acquisition at Umayanalloor in Kollam was considered by the court.
