New Delhi: The Supreme Court Wednesday dismissed a plea by Janata Party president Subramanian Swamy seeking dismantling of the 10-member experts' committee on the Sethusamudram canal project for its alleged 'anti-Hindu' and 'anti-Ram Sethu bias'.
"Whatever objections you have, go and raise them in the committee," the bench of Chief Justice KG Balakrishnan and Justices RV Raveendran and Dalveer Bhandari said.
"You come to us when you have objections to the findings and recommendations of the committee," the judges said. Swamy had filed his plea Tuesday evening. The dismissed it when he sought an urgent hearing on the plea.
The experts' panel was constituted by the Central Government October 5 to re-examine the feasibility of implementing the Sethusamudram Shipping Canal Project off the Tamil Nadu coast without damaging Adam's bridge or Ram Sethu, revered by many Hindus as the bridge referred to in the Ramayana.
The government had constituted the panel in accordance with its assurance to the Supreme Court on September 14 that it would review the project to build a shorter sea route around the Indian peninsula, without damaging the Ram Sethu.
The government had given the assurance while taking back a controversial affidavit, which cast doubts on the existence of Lord Ram and the events depicted in the epic.
Besides Madras University Vice-Chancellor S Ramachandran, the panel includes Delhi University history professor RS Sharma, Aqua Culture Foundation of India president M Sakthivel and Central Pollution Control Board's former chairman Dileep K Biswas.
The other members of the panel include Kolkata-based Zoological Survey of India's former director JRD Alfred and Nagpur-based National Environment Engineering Research Institute director SR Wate.
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