The Delhi High Court dismissed a PIL filed by advocate Gaurang Gupta seeking direction to the authorities to prohibit the affixation of images of deities on walls to prevent people from relieving themselves on them or spitting on the ‘sacred images or littering.
Advocate Gaurang Gupta in his petition said that people were using pictures of deities in various places as a measure to stop open public urination. However, these measures are harming religious sentiments of the people at large.
The images are ‘sacred’ to the followers of the religion and that public urination, spitting, and throwing junk is a menace to the public at large and such acts are a violation of the rights enshrined under Article 19(1)(a) and thus, are liable to be reasonably restricted, he added
The plea stated that “The continuance of this malicious practice of using the pictures of God to prohibit public urination, spitting and throwing junk is greatly violating Article 25 of the Constitution of India.
