MP High Court denies that Chief Justice SK Kait removed temple from official residence

The Madhya Pradesh High Court has a refuted the allegation that Chief Justice Suresh Kumar Kait removed a Hanuman Temple situated within the compound of his official residence..Registrar General Dharmindra Singh issued a press note categorically refuting all such claims."These reports are entirely false, misleading, and baseless. I wish to categorically clarify and refute these claims," the press release said. The allegations started after a lawyer, one Ravindra Nath Tripathi, wrote to the President, the Prime Minister, the Chief Justice of India and the Union Law Minister seeking action against Chief Justice Kait for removing a temple situated within the compound of his official bungalow.As per Tripathi's letter, the temple had remained in the compound for a long time - even when the said bungalow was occupied by a Muslim Chief Justice - before Justice Kait got it demolished..Close on the heels of the said letter, the Madhya Pradesh High Court Bar Association also jumped into the fray and wrote to Chief Justice of India (CJI) Sanjiv Khanna seeking an inquiry into the issue and action against those responsible.As per the letter by the bar body to CJI, the temple located in the bungalow of the Chief Justice was a historical one and many former Chief Justices of the High Court used to pay their respects and worship there including Justices SA Bobde, AM Khanwilkar and Hemant Gupta all of whom later got elevated to the Supreme Court.The employees working at the residence of the Chief Justice used to perform puja at the temple.Hence, the same could not have been demolished without the permission of the government or without passing any statutory order.Such an act is an insult to the believers of sanatana dharma, it was stated by the bar association in its letter.All these allegations have now been denied by the High Court administration..As per the press note issued by Registrar General, the Public Works Department (PWD) has also clarified the matter and confirmed that no temple was ever present at the Chief Justice's residence.The allegations being circulated in some sections of the media are fabricated and appear to be a deliberate attempt to mislead the public and malign the integrity of the judicial system, the press not underlined.The Registrar General strongly asserted that these demolition of mandir reports are entirely untrue and urged media organizations and the public to avoid spreading defamatory and unverified information.It further stated that the publication of such unfounded news constitutes a direct interference in the administration of justice and may be regarded as contemptuous in nature. Attempts to create false narratives about the judiciary not only undermine the rule of law but also pose a serious threat to the sanctity of judicial independence, it was added.