‘Preservation of body would not be first such case, Punjab tells HC

“Several Popes (bodies) have been preserved. Saint Xavier’s body is still preserved in Goa. Now there is a new science called cryonics,” added the state’s seniormost counsel while referring to the technique of deep-freezing the bodies of dead persons. The body of Stalin, who was the premier of the Soviet Union and is known for his totalitarian rule, was preserved for at least five years after his death. The communist revolutionary Lenin’s body has been kept in a mausoleum in Russia’s capital, Moscow, since 1924.

During the hearing of the case, the Punjab government counsel while commenting on the controversy and the state’s role in it said the state cannot determine anybody’s religious beliefs and the case has to be decided by the court. “I, as a state, cannot determine anybody’s religious beliefs. It is the jurisdiction of the court. The court has usurped its own authority by asking us to do it,” said Nanda, who will resume his arguments in the case on Monday before the HC bench comprising Justices Mahesh Grover and Shekher Dhawan.

Nanda apprised the court about several instances wherein the bodies of dead people have been preserved. “I have placed on record a research which shows evolution of the (body) preservation process,” he said, adding there have many cases of bodies being preserved. Though Ashutosh Maharaj has been declared clinically dead by doctors, the DJJS management has kept the body in a deep freezer, saying the spiritual head had gone into ‘samadhi’ (deep meditation) and would come out one day.

A single bench of the court in 2014 had given directions for the cremation of ‘clinically dead’ Ashutosh Maharaj but different appeals in the case has kept the issue alive. The HC bench in the morning had declared that it would reserve its judgment in the case after Nanda could not reach the courtroom in time. The case was again taken for the hearing in the afternoon following Nanda’s request before the judges.

As the High Court resumed the hearing of the case in morning, Punjab’s Additional Advocate General Reeta Kohli requested the court to wait for Nanda – who was attending another case. The judges left the room saying then they would wait for the counsel. When Nanda did not arrive in time, the double bench orally declared the judgment as reserved but later listed the case for hearing on May 8.