Ganesh Chaturthi: Supreme Court upholds Madras High Court order banning sale of plaster of paris idols

The Supreme Court on Monday upheld an order of a division bench of the Madras High Court that had prohibited the sale of Lord Ganesh idols made of plaster of paris..A Bench of Chief Justice of India (CJI) DY Chandrachud with Justices JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra said the petitioners could have used natural clay or other items that can be immersed in water instead."The appellate order is interim in nature. What is the use of selling idols which cannot be immersed...You could have used natural clay etc. Sorry. Dismissed," the CJI remarked..The Court was hearing an appeal against an order passed on Sunday by which a division bench of the Madras High Court stayed a single-judge order that had allowed the sale of plaster of paris (PoP) idols ahead of the end of Ganesh Chaturthi.On Saturday, Justice GR Swaminathan had observed that while the sale of Vinayaka idols made of PoP cannot be restricted, their immersion in water bodies can be restricted. The single-judge had asked shopkeepers to maintain a register with details of their customers so they could be inspected by authorities.The next day, a Bench of Justices SS Sundar and Bharatha Chakravarthy stayed the said order, relying on guidelines of the Central Pollution Control Board. The Bench also rejected the contention that idol sellers would face financial hardships if sale of PoP idols was barred, observing that only a day of the ongoing festival remained..Today, Senior Advocate Shyam Divan appeared before the apex court for an artisan who had challenged the division bench order.He pointed out that facilities can be provided for immersion of PoP idols in artificial water bodies or special tanks. Divan added that several idols now lay unsold with tomorrow being the last day of the festival.The Court, however, rejected his contentions and dismissed the plea.