Team Herald
PORVORIM: The State government on Wednesday refused to intervene in the dispute between the Mahajans and locals of Navadurga temple at Madkai but expressed willingness to make necessary changes in the existing Mahajan Act, provided the amendment comes from the people.
The ruling as well as opposition benches on the floor of the House demanded the State government’s intervention in having an out-of-court settlement between the groups. They even proposed a team of five MLAs – Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar, PWD Minister Ramakrishna Dhavalikar, Deputy Speaker Vishnu Wagh, MLAs Naresh Sawal and Pandurang Madkaikar to resolve the issue.
Parsekar told the House that the government cannot intervene in the matter as it is sub-judice and it won’t be wise to give a political colour to a religious issue. “I also want the issue to be settled but it cannot be done with government intervention. It is an issue involving temple and goddess and I feel, we should not try to give it a political colour,” he said.
“However, if the amendment comes, government is willing to consider changes to the Mahajan Act. I agree, that we need to change as per time and accordingly, the laws also need to be changed,” he said agreeing to a demand raised by Wagh, who pointed out that the existing Mahajan law was drafted in 1886 and needs to be re-looked at.
Parsekar was responding to a calling attention motion moved by Madkaikar and Sawal, who sought to know steps initiated by the government to resolve the dispute.
Madkaikar informed the House that the issue is going out of control and before it worsens, the government needs to intervene and try to have an out of court settlement. “I am one of the devotees of Navdurga but being a political leader I had distanced myself from the issue as I didn’t want to make it a political issue,” he said.
The MLA expressed concern that the ongoing issue may become the base for more disputes in other temples involving temple committees and locals.
Participating in the discussion, Wagh said that at a meeting called by committee members and Mahajans on Sunday to prepare the temple budget, nearly 600 to 700 police personnel were deployed at the site, as if the government was aware about the possible fallout of the meeting.
The Chief Minister justified the police force as it was demanded by the temple committee, as a precautionary measure.
