No Durga Puja, Shiv Sena Dassehra rally at Shivaji Park?

MUMBAI - A question mark hangs over the Durga Puja celebrations and Dussehra rally at the historic Shivaji Park here after the civic authorities, citing a court order, denied permission for the much-anticipated events at the venue.

The civic body has cited a Bombay High Court order declaring the Shivaji Park as a “silence zone”.

This year, organiser Bengal Club is celebrating the platinum jubilee of the five-day Durga Puja festival starting Oct 13. The Dussehra rally, organised by the Shiv Sena, is slated for Oct 17.

As time is ticking away and there are few alternate sites available, the Bengal Club has moved the Bombay High Court.

“We have been organising the Durga Puja for decades and this year we have not got the permission. Our case is likely to come up for hearing in the court Wednesday and we hope for the best,” said Bengal Club president U. Mukhopadyay, a former IAS officer.

A similar apprehension confronts the Shiv Sena which has been holding its annual Dussehra rallies for over four decades, addressed by party chief Bal Thackeray, barring the past few years.

A senior police official said that in view of the high court order, permission for the Sena rally could not be granted though the party had approached the police for holding the event.

The court orders had come a few months ago following a public suit which contended that since there are several educational institutions, religious places and hospitals in the vicinity - within a 100-metre radius - Shivaji Park should be declared a “zone of silence”.

Though the Shiv Sena has not made any official announcement in this regard, party spokesman Sanjay Raut has indicated that it would also move the high court and seek permission to hold the Dussehra rally.