Madras High Court Refuses To Entertain Plea Seeking Implementation Of Guidelines For Idol Immersion During Ganesh Chaturthi
We can't issue directions based on apprehensions, Court said.
The Madras High Court has refused to entertain a plea seeking directions to the State to take strict and time-bound measures and ensure that the guidelines with respect to idol immersion issued by the Central Pollution Control Board are followed during the Vinayaga Chaturthi celebrations. [2026 LiveLaw (Mad) 440] The bench of Chief Justice SA Dharmadhikari and Justice G Arul...
The Madras High Court has refused to entertain a plea seeking directions to the State to take strict and time-bound measures and ensure that the guidelines with respect to idol immersion issued by the Central Pollution Control Board are followed during the Vinayaga Chaturthi celebrations. [2026 LiveLaw (Mad) 440]
The bench of Chief Justice SA Dharmadhikari and Justice G Arul Murugan refused to entertain the plea filed by a social activist, noting that the National Green Tribunal was already considering the issue. The court thus dismissed the plea as withdrawn, with liberty to the petitioner to work out the remedies before the appropriate forum.
“The NGT is taking up the matter today. Then why should we issue directions parallely?” the court asked.
The court also pointed out that the petitioner was approaching the court in advance, without any cause of action. It noted that directions were being issued by the tribunal and government from time to time, which were being followed. When the petitioner pointed out that the guidelines were not followed last year, the court said that the petitioner should have approached the court at that time and should not have waited for the eleventh hour.
“The NGT, State are all passing guidelines. It will be followed. In advance how can you say they will not follow. If something happened last year, why didn't you approach the court at that time? Why did you sleep on it for one year and come to court at the eleventh hour? We can't issue directions based on apprehensions. As of today, there's no cause of action to entertain this petition. It's all in advance,” the court orally remarked.
In his plea, the petitioner had submitted that the plea did not concern any religion, denomination or place of worship but only sought effective, non-discriminatory and uniform enforcement of statutory provisions, government orders, Central Pollution Control Board guidelines and binding judicial directions related to environmental protection, noise control and immersion of idols.
The petitioner also added that if the guidelines were not followed, it would give rise to recurring concerns relating to water pollution, accumulation of non-biodegradable waste, noise pollution, public safety and traffic regulation.
The petitioner also argued that the authorities had a duty to prevent water pollution and regulate noise during festivals, which was reinforced by the right to a clean environment under Article 21 of the Constitution and the State's duty under Article 48A of the Constitution.
The petitioner thus called upon the State to place on record the steps taken, including details of inspection, violations detected, enforcement action taken, artificial immersion facilities created, noise level measurements and water quality assessment reports. The petitioner had alleged that the State had failed to discharge its constitutional and public trust obligation by permitting the continued immersion of polluting idols and the resultant contamination of water bodies.
Case Title: Dr R Karpagam v Union of India and Others
Citation: 2026 LiveLaw (Mad) 440
Case No: WP No 36912 of 2026