Dr Subramanian Swamy pleads SC to hear plea seeking national heritage status for Ram Setu

New Delhi: Senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader, Dr Subramanian Swamy, mentioned his case on Thursday before the Supreme Court bench seeking national heritage status for Ram Setu, to which, the SC agreed to list the matter after the Constitution Bench hearing.

"After the Constitution Bench, We will list it. See the higher the powers, the higher is the responsibility," the bench of the Supreme Court, headed by the Chief Justice of India (CJI) Dr Dhananjaya Yeshwant Chadrachud said and assured Dr Swamy that the matter would be taken up for hearing.

The former Rajya Sabha Member of Parliament (MP) and also a senior leader from the BJP, Dr Subramanian Swamy mentioned his plea, before the CJI Bench of the Supreme Court, seeking national heritage status for Ram Setu. Dr Swamy sought urgent listing of his petition.

CJI Dr Chandrachud agreed to list his matter after the Constitution Bench hearing.

The Solicitor General (SG) Tushar Mehta, representing the Central government, had on Janaury 19, told the Supreme Court that the process to declare ‘Ram Setu’ a national heritage monument is currently underway in the ministry of Culture.

Swamy had earlier, told the Apex Court that the case has been pending for eight years before it, but the government has not been able to respond on the plea.

In his petition, Dr Swamy had urged the Apex Court to pass order and direct the "Union of India (UOI) along with the National Monuments Authority (NMA) to declare Ram Setu as an Ancient Monument of National Importance."

Dr Swamy had also urged the top court to pass order and direct "Union of India to engage Geological Survey of India and Archeological Survey of India to conduct a detailed survey in respect to Ram Setu as an Ancient Monument of National Importance."

Dr Swamy said that he has already won the first round of the litigation in which the Centre accepted the existence of 'Ram Sethu' and added that union minister concerned had called a meeting in 2017 to consider his demand to declare the Sethu as a national heritage monument but subsequently nothing happened.

Ram Setu is a chain of limestone shoals between between Pamban Island, also known as Rameswaram Island, off the south-eastern coast of Tamil Nadu, and Mannar Island, off the north-western coast of Sri Lanka.(UNI)