A bench of the Bombay High Court on Wednesday dismissed a petition seeking directions for merely 50 people to pray five times and Taraweeh prayers on the one-acre Juma Masjid in Mumbai during the holy month of Ramadan, reported LiveLaw. The petitioners have stated that while 7000 people can be accommodated in the mosque, permission has been sought for only 50 people, following COVID-19 norms.
The division of Justices RD Dhanuka and VG Bisht refused to allow the mosque to open up for prayers, in view of the ongoing critical covid situation in the State, while dismissing a petition filed by the Juma Masjid of Bombay Trust.
The petitioner, advocate Mohiuddin Ahmed Vaid argued that if marriages could be allowed with a restricted number of people, why not prayers in a Mosque. He further said that on April 12, the Delhi High Court has considered pleas of allowing people to pray in a Delhi mosque, by following all necessary SOP’s.
However, the bench observed that the Delhi High Court’s order could not be considered as a precedent.
“Considering the prevailing situation and the ground reality prevailing in the State of Maharashtra, we cannot permit the petitioner to perform any prayers in the said mosque in violation of the order dated 13th April 2013 issued by the Government of Maharashtra which is issued in the public interest and for the safety of all the residents of Maharashtra,” the court held.
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Rushda Fathima Khan is the Staff Reporter for The Cognate.
