Places Of Worship Act Only Prohibits ‘Conversion’ Of Religious Character, No Bar On State Acquisition For Public Purpose: Allahabad High Court (Live Law)

By Sparsh Upadhyay

The Allahabad High Court has ruled that the Places of Worship (Special Provisions) Act, 1991, prohibits only the ‘conversion’ of the religious character of a place of worship from one religious denomination to another, but it does not bar the State from acquiring such properties for ‘secular’ and ‘public’ purposes. With this, a Bench of Justice JJ Munir and Justice Arun Kumar dismissed…

The Allahabad High Court has ruled that the Places of Worship (Special Provisions) Act, 1991, prohibits only the ‘conversion’ of the religious character of a place of worship from one religious denomination to another, but it does not bar the State from acquiring such properties for ‘secular’ and ‘public’ purposes.

With this, a Bench of Justice JJ Munir and Justice Arun Kumar dismissed a writ petition seeking to halt the widening and beautification of the Dalmandi area in Varanasi, a project undertaken as a part of the UP Govt’s Shri Kashi Vishwanath Dham Corridor development.

“…the Act of 1991 prohibits the conversion of place of worship of one religious denomination into another. It does not derogate from the State’s authority to acquire any place of religious worship for a secular and public purpose, like development of a road or augmentation of infrastructure or any similar activity”, the bench observed in its 32-page order passed today.

Briefly put, the petitioners, 6 tenants and shopkeepers operating in the Dalmandi area, had moved the High Court seeking a writ of mandamus to prevent their dispossession from the area. They also sought protection for 6 ancient mosques in the area that were proposed for takeover and demolition as part of the project.

For context, this area is located around 800 meters from the main Kashi Vishwanath Temple, and the six ancient mosques proposed for demolition by the administration are: Anjuman Intezamia Masjid, Masjid Rangile Shah, Masjid Ali Raza Khan, Masjid Karimullah Baig, Masjid Nisaran, and Masjid Sangamarmar.

The petitioners submitted that no public purpose, which the respondents say is involved, would be served by depriving thousands of citizens of their right to livelihood and shelter, as well as their right to worship, by demolishing the 6 ancient mosques located in the area.

This story was originally published in livelaw.in. Read the full story here.