A Division Bench of the Supreme Court has issued a notice in a Special Leave Petition filed by the Save Old Goa Action Committee, assailing an order passed by the Bombay High Court.
By its impugned order, the High Court(Goa Bench) has set aside an order passed by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) to demolish a residential house, in the UNESCO heritage zone in Old Goa city citing violation of natural justice principles.
The Bench, comprising Justices BV Nagarathna and UjjalBhuyan, while issuing notice, expressed concerns about the High Court setting aside the said matter prematurely instead of remitting the matter back to ASI for re- consideration.
The ground-plus-one structure with a tiled roof stands between the Mandovi river and St Cajetan Church and is located close to the Viceroy’s Arch in Old Goa’s heritage precinct. The protest has been ongoing near the St Cajetan Church, behind which the contentious structure stands