WHILE DELIVERING THE historic judgment in the Ram Janmabhoomi case in 2019, the Supreme Court had reaffirmed the significance of the Places of Worship (Special Provisions) Act, 1991. It had said that the act, meant to preserve the religious character of places of worship as they existed on August 15, 1947, was vital to protect the secular features of the Indian polity. It had also stressed that the Ayodhya matter was the only exception to the law.
However, after that judgment, claims for restoration of the Hindus’ rights with regard to the Gyanvapi mosque in Varanasi and the Shahi Idgah Masjid adjacent to the Krishna Janmabhoomi in Mathura have been taken up in court. A similar plea regarding the Qutub Minar has also reached the court. While these claims are being critiqued and countered through the lens of the 1991 act, the legality of the law itself is being questioned now.
The Gyanvapi case, where the matter has progressed to the point of a court-mandated process to ascertain the religious character of the place of worship, and where a shivling was allegedly discovered during the survey, provides the most immediate and toughest test for the 1991 act.
The Anjuman Intezamia Masjid management committee, which manages the Gyanvapi mosque, has challenged the survey in the Supreme Court; its contention is that the survey is barred under Section 3 of the 1991 act and also that the restrictions imposed amount to changing the character of the place of worship.
Denne historien er fra June 05, 2022-utgaven av THE WEEK.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent ? Logg på
Denne historien er fra June 05, 2022-utgaven av THE WEEK.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på
William Dalrymple goes further back
Indian readers have long known William Dalrymple as the chronicler nonpareil of India in the early years of the British raj. His latest book, The Golden Road, is a striking departure, since it takes him to a period from about the third century BC to the 12th-13th centuries CE.
The bleat from the street
What with all the apps delivering straight to one’s doorstep, the supermarkets, the food halls and even the occasional (super-expensive) pop-up thela (cart) offering the woke from field-to-fork option, the good old veggie-market/mandi has fallen off my regular beat.
Courage and conviction
Justice A.M. Ahmadi's biography by his granddaughter brings out behind-the-scenes tension in the Supreme Court as it dealt with the Babri Masjid demolition case
EPIC ENTERPRISE
Gowri Ramnarayan's translation of Ponniyin Selvan brings a fresh perspective to her grandfather's magnum opus
Upgrade your jeans
If you don’t live in the top four-five northern states of India, winter means little else than a pair of jeans. I live in Mumbai, where only mad people wear jeans throughout the year. High temperatures and extreme levels of humidity ensure we go to work in mulmul salwars, cotton pants, or, if you are lucky like me, wear shorts every day.
Garden by the sea
When Kozhikode beach became a fertile ground for ideas with Manorama Hortus
RECRUITERS SPEAK
Industry requirements and selection criteria of management graduates
MORAL COMPASS
The need to infuse ethics into India's MBA landscape
B-SCHOOLS SHOULD UNDERSTAND THAT INDIAN ECONOMY IS GOING TO WITNESS A TREMENDOUS GROWTH
INTERVIEW - Prof DEBASHIS CHATTERJEE, director, Indian Institute of Management, Kozhikode
COURSE CORRECTION
India's best b-schools are navigating tumultuous times. Hurdles include lower salaries offered to their graduates and students misusing AI
