MUMBAI, INDIA, October 12, 2006: The Bombay High Court has ordered that the wall around Siddhivinayak temple to prevent terrorist attacks must go. The court order came in response to a lawsuit filed by local residents who said the wall was encroaching on a public road. Hundreds of thousands of dollars were spent by temple authorities on constructing a wall which was meant to be temporary in nature. The Siddhivinayak temple is Mumbai’s richest and most powerful temple. The wall was sanctioned by the Maharashtra government last November for a one-year period. But local residents protested saying the structure built was a permanent one. Another objection was that instead of eight feet, the wall was built 60 feet away from the temple, thus encroaching upon the main road, causing not just traffic jams but diversions. “We plan to celebrate this order. This had become a nuisance for us. It had become difficult for us to move around here,” said a local resident. Temple authorities have already said they will appeal in the Supreme Court.
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