A Ganpati idol was installed at the Idgah ground in Hubbali-Dharwad after Karnataka High Court upheld authorities' decision to allow Ganesh Chaturthi, rejecting pleas challenging permission for allowing the rituals, news agency ANI reported. "The situation in Dharwad is totally peaceful, with elaborate arrangements made regarding the Ganesh festival. We have deployed one RAF company along with other security personnel," said Labhu Ram, the commissioner of police, Hubballi-Dharwad.
In a midnight hearing on Tuesday, the Karnataka High Court upheld an order of the Dharwad municipal commissioner allowing the celebration of Ganesh Chaturthi at the Idgah Maidan. Supreme Court had ordered status quo in the case, and refused to grant permission for the celebrations, but the High Court said the order was not applicable. Justice Ashok S. Kinagi held that the property belonged to the Dharwad municipality and Anjuman-e-Islam was only a lease holder for a period of 999 years at a fee of Re 1 per year.
Muslim group Anjuman-e-Islam had claimed that the property in question was protected under the Places of Worship Act, 1991, which says no religious place of worship can be converted.
The high court said in the case of the property in question, it was not a religious place of worship and was allowed for prayers only during Bakrid and Ramzan. During other times, it was used for purposes like a marketplace and a parking lot.
