The Punjab and Haryana High Court has served a notice to the Aam Aadmi Party-led Punjab government concerning its recent initiation of the ‘Mukhyamantri Tirth Yatra Yojana’. The court seeks clarification regarding the rationale behind offering this free pilgrimage scheme at the expense of the State.
This action follows a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed by social activist Parvinder Singh Kittna from Hoshiarpur, prompting a Bench headed by acting Chief Justice Ritu Bahri and Justice Nidhi Gupta to issue the notice.
H.C. Arora, representing the petitioner, informed that the court has also responded to the petitioner’s plea for a temporary halt on the scheme. The petitioner challenges the initiative, deeming it a misuse of taxpayer funds without contributing to the State’s progress or welfare.
The scheme, inaugurated by the Punjab government on November 27, intends to facilitate pilgrims in visiting various holy sites nationwide and within the State. Estimated to cost the State Rs 40 crore over 13 weeks in the current fiscal year, it faces opposition on grounds conflicting with the Supreme Court’s directives in a 2012 verdict titled “Union of India and Others Versus Rafique Shaikh Bhikan and Anr.”
As per Arora, the High Court has instructed the State government to submit an affidavit before the next hearing scheduled for December 12. This affidavit should detail the demand for such a scheme from the public and explain the necessity for the State to allocate funds to it, especially at a time when Punjab’s youth are grappling with unemployment.
Additionally, the court has sought clarification on the relaunch of the ‘Tirath Yatra’ scheme, considering that a previous similar initiative introduced by the Punjab government in 2017 was retracted following a High Court notice.
