Gujarat HC nixes PIL over report claiming Buddhist remains at Somnath temple

The Gujarat High Court on Thursday dismissed a PIL that sought public disclosure of the reported archaeological discoveries related to Buddhism found beneath the site of the famous Somnath temple in the state, and imposed a cost of `2 lakh on the petitioner. 

A division bench of Chief Justice Sunita Agarwal and Justice DN Ray dismissed the public interest litigation (PIL) filed by one Vilas Tukaram Kharat, saying it was filled with “incorrect, misleading and distorted facts” and caused damage to the credibility of a genuine PIL.

The HC noted in its order that the PIL, filed by Kharat, a resident of Maharashtra claiming to be a scholar of Marathi language and also a Buddhist who is a founder-member of an NGO called Sanatan Dhamm, sought “a scientific survey conducted by IIT Gandhinagar and Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) and which was reported in print and social media” to be placed in public domain. He made Shree Somnath Trust and ASI among respondents in the PIL.

The court noted that none of the statements made in the PIL can be verified by the petitioners being true to his personal knowledge or on the basis of any authentic document or material, read over or researched by him.

The state government argued that the PIL was aimed at dragging the temple trust into unnecessary controversy without any basis.

“This petition is filled with incorrect, misleading and distorted facts, and filed in the nature of PIL in fact would cause damage to the sanctity of the benevolent cause of law of PIL developed by the apex court,” the court noted.

“It is more than evident that the petitioner herein is an unscrupulous litigant, and the PIL is filed with incorrect, incomplete and misleading