Bombay HC Quashes Notice Cancelling Mahim Mela Over Traffic Concerns, Says Managing Congestion Is Police's Duty

Mumbai: The Bombay High Court has quashed a notice issued by a senior police inspector of Mahim police directing the organiser of the annual Mahim Mela, which was to be held on December 24 and 25, to cancel the mela due to traffic congestion in the area.

A vacation bench of Justices SG Dige and Advait Sethna said that the only apprehension raised by police about traffic congestion “cannot be a ground to cancel permission as it is the duty of respondents to manage the traffic congestion by appointing extra staff.”

The mela is centred around the Dargah of religious scholar Hazrat Makhdoom Fakih Ali Mahimi to celebrate his life and teachings.

The HC quashed the police notice dated December 23 while hearing a petition by Zahid Khamisa, a proprietor of Angel Land, Agripada, which runs amusement rides and activities at Mahim Mela since 1986. The plea contended that they had requisite permissions from the authorities including premises license issued by Commissioner of Police which was valid from December 14 till 25.

Apart from traffic congestion, the notice mentioned that a large number of Christians would gather at the nearby St. Michael’s Church on December 25, thereby expressing possibility of occurrence of untoward incident.