He went there to dispel fears of clerics over the looming danger to many shrines, mosques and other religious structures if the proposed Development Plan 2034 is passed without rectifications.
Shelar told over a hundred clerics, including imams and preachers, the DP was "thoughtless and mindless".
"It is faulty from the consultant level. Then there are serious mistakes in the existing land use shown in the plan. In it a koliwada is shown as a cemetery, mosques and churches as schools or playgrounds. The draft has not fulfilled the purpose as many heritage and religious structures will be endangered if it is not rectified," said Shelar.
"I have never been amid so many imams," he admitted. He said that a committee, headed by the chief secretary, had submitted its interim report and pointed out faults in the plan. He also said chief minister Devendra Fadnavis had spoken about limited intervention in the matter. "If needed, a new DP can be drawn up," he said. He assured the clerics that no legal places of worship will be harmed in the final DP. Shelar said he would take a delegation of religious leaders to the CM soon.
Earlier, Mahim dargah managing trustee Sohail Khandwani, after pointing out several lapses in the DP, demanded that it should be cancelled in public interest. Dr Zahir Kazi, president, Anjuman-I-Islam, too said that a faultless DP was needed for socially cohesive existence.
"This meeting is to raise concerns not just over a threat to mosques and madrassas, but to religious structures of all faiths. If we want to continue to live in a peaceful society, it is necessary that religious structures which are legally constructed should not be harmed, as India is essentially a country of religious people," said Moin Mian.
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