Supreme Court Refuses to Allow Muharram Processions
A PIL was filed by a UP based based man seeking permission to allow Muharram Processions in the country. Watch our latest video to learn more.
On Wednesday 27 th August 2020, for the first time since the COVID outbreak, over 75,000 new cases were reported in India in one day. Religious processions were banned since March when the lockdown started to control the spread of coronavirus. After months some restrictions have been relaxed but still there are strict rules. The Supreme Court’s (SC) three-judge bench headed by CJI SA Bobde and included Justices AS Bopanna and V. Ramasubramanian, was hearing a plea (PIL) submitted by Uttar Pradesh resident Syed Kalbe Jawad seeking permission for Muharram processions.
Jawad gave the example of Shri Jagannath Temple in Puri, Odisha where the Rath Yatra was held in June and the relaxations given to Jains for the Paryushan festival last weekend. The SC had permitted a limited number of people at Jain temples Dadar, Byculla, and Chembur. When the bench heard the arguments, it said that this case was different. SC told Jawad that the Rath Yatra in Odisha and permission for Jains in Mumbai to visit their temples were restricted to a particular place. The Supreme Court rejected the PIL.
CJI Bobde explained, “The difficulty is you are asking for a general order for the whole country. We cannot risk the health of all people. If you had asked for one place, we could have assessed the risk. If permission is given, it can lead to an increase in cases. Because of this again the Muslim community will be targetted for spreading covid like Tablighi Jamaat event in Delhi.” Jawad said he wanted permission for holding the procession in UP capital Lucknow as a large number of Shia Muslims lived there. SC suggested that he approach the Allahabad High Court, as the SC cannot know what the conditions are in Lucknow.
The All India Idara Tahfaz-e-Hussainiyat an organisation from South Mumbai has filed a petition in the Bombay High Court asking permission to carry out Muharram processions in Mumbai by following all precautionary measures. The HC said that Hindus were given permission to celebrate 10-day ganesh utsav. If muslims are not given permission then it would be discriminatory. The HC has asked the state government & Maharashtra SDRF State disaster management department to discuss with the organisation and give the high court a report on 28th August after which a decision will be made.
