Permission for holding the Dahi Handi festival at Ashok Kedare Chowk in Bhandup West was declined on Thursday by the Bombay High Court, following the rejection of both applications by the police due to concerns about potential law and order disturbances. The decision affected two major political groups — the Shiv Sena and the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) — each of whom had sought to host the event at the same location.
The matter was brought before a division bench of Justices G.S. Kulkarni and Arif Doctor through a petition filed by Sandip Jalgaonkar, a former MNS office bearer who has since joined the Shiv Sena. It was conveyed in the court that Jalgaonkar had claimed to have organised the event for several years under the Shri Swami Samartha Pratishthan, with necessary permissions obtained from the police, municipal authorities, and the traffic department. His legal representative, Suresh Samrat, was reported to have stressed that all previous approvals had been granted in Jalgaonkar’s personal capacity and not under any political party’s name.
The MNS’s position was presented by advocate Anand Pai, who asserted that Jalgaonkar had earlier sought permissions in his capacity as the party’s vibhag adhyaksha. It was maintained that the event had, for at least three consecutive years, been held under the MNS banner. The court was recorded as remarking that the situation appeared to be an attempt to “create a rival organisation” and that a practical resolution could have been achieved by holding the celebrations at different timings to avoid confrontation.
Government pleader Tejani Mastakar informed the court that both applications had been rejected by the assistant commissioner after the receipt of two competing requests for the same venue. The police inspector’s communication was cited, noting that in view of the risk of public order problems, neither party was granted permission. Since neither group was prepared to compromise, the bench refused to intervene further. The petition was dismissed, and the festival at the disputed location will not proceed under either banner this year. The ruling effectively placed the responsibility for any alternative arrangements back on the organisers, should they choose to pursue other venues.
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