Today, Supreme Court refused to interfere with an order passed by the Madras High Court allows for the production and sale of Ganesh idols crafted from Plaster of Paris (PoP) in preparation for Ganesh Chaturthi festivities, while simultaneously imposing restrictions on their immersion in water bodies.

The bench comprising CJI DY Chandrachud, Justice JB Pardiwala, and Justice Manoj Misra dismissed a petition challenging a division bench decision of the Madras High Court which stayed an order of a single judge allowing the sale of Ganesh idols made using Plaster of Paris.

Recently, the division bench of the Madras High Court has stayed the order passed by a single bench, in which permission was given to sell idols made of plaster of Paris. In the special sitting of the Madras High Court, the court made it clear that there will be no sale or manufacturing of idols made of plaster of Paris during the Vinayaka Chaturthi festival.

Shyam Divan argued that the petitioner is an experienced artisan who has been crafting idols for many years. He explained that the police halted the sale of these idols on Friday. In response, the petitioner sought relief from the Madurai Bench of the High Court, which, during a special session on Saturday, concluded that the sale of such idols should not be halted and that the restrictions only applied to their immersion in waterbodies.

However, this judgment by the single bench was subsequently put on hold by a division bench in a special session held on Sunday. Divan pointed out that the guidelines issued by the Central Pollution Control Board specifically pertain to immersion and not the sale of idols.

CJI Chandrachud responded to Divan by saying, "You could have used natural clay, sorry. Dismissed." Earlier in the morning, when the matter was brought up for urgent listing, CJI Chandrachud questioned what people should do with idols made of Plaster of Paris if they cannot be immersed.