Subramanian Swamy Seeks Urgent Listing Of Plea To Declare Ram Setu As 'National Heritage'; Supreme Court Agrees To Hear On March 9

The Supreme Court on Wednesday agreed to hear on 9th March the plea seeking National Heritage Status for Ram Setu.

A three-judge Bench of CJI Ramana, Justice Bopanna and Justice Hima Kohli issued the direction after a request was made by Rajya Sabha MP Dr Subramanian Swamy seeking urgent hearing of his plea for directions to the Centre for declaring Ram Setu as a national heritage monument.

Dr Subramanian Swamy appeared before the Court and submitted that the matter be taken up and not be deleted.

The Bench then decided to list it on 9th March and orally observed that it will then decide if it has to go ahead with the matter or not. Replying to a query made by the CJI, Swamy submitted that the Centre has filed a counter-affidavit and that the matter has been pending for long.

In April last year, a Bench headed by the then CJI SA Bobde had directed that the plea seeking National Heritage Status for Ram Sethu be listed before the "next CJI" NV Ramana, who was set to hold office of the Chief Justice of India with effect from 24th April.

Ram Setu, is a bridge which is a chain of limestone shoals, off the south-eastern coast of Tamil Nadu. It runs from Pamban Island near Rameshwaram in South India to Mannar Island, off the northern coast of Sri Lanka. The bridge is mentioned in the epic Ramayana as constructed by Lord Ram to reach Sri Lanka to rescue Sita.

Supreme Court had in January 2020 observed that it will consider Dr Swamy's Ram Sethu plea, but had asked him to mention it after three months owing to the pendency of cases before it. Swamy had submitted before the Supreme Court that a meeting was called in 2017 by Union Minister to consider his demand but nothing had happened after that.

The issue of declaring Ram Setu as a National Heritage monument was raised by Dr Swamy, in his plea filed in 2007 against Sethusamudram Ship Channel project for protection of Ram Setu and a stay was granted by the top Court on the project's work over Ram Sethu.

Under the Sethusamudram project, an 83-km-long deep water channel was to be created, linking Mannar with Palk Strait, by extensive dredging and removal of the limestone shoals which constitute the mythological Sethu.

The Central Government through ASG Pinky Anand had then informed the Court that "in the interest of the nation", the government does not want to touch Ram Sethu rather it has decided to explore an alternative to earlier alignment of Sethusamudram Ship Channel Project without affecting Ram Sethu.

In November 2017, petitioner Swamy had sought the court's permission to withdraw his petition saying the government had already clarified its stand outside the court that it has no intention whatsoever to tamper with the 'bridge', which is a chain of limestone shoals, off the south-eastern coast of Tamil Nadu. The bench, however, told him to wait till the Central makes its stand clear before the Court.