New Delhi, Mar. 5: Socialist Party (India) has planned to write to the Chief Justice of India and President of India on Places of Worship Act, 1991, to ensure that people’s representatives in government positions must not use state machinery for religious purposes and against hate speech.
Addressing a program here Saturday, General Secretary of SP-India, Sandeep Pandey who has recently returned his Ramon Magsaysay Award while protesting against the US role in the Israeli war on Palestine, said, “Courts allowing new cases to be opened, for example, at Gyanvapi mosque in Varanasi and Shahi Idgah in Mathura are a violation of Places of Worship Act, 1991, which prohibits any attempt to change the character of any religious place after 15 August, 1947. The courts have allowed surveys at the above-mentioned sites in the name of determining whether there were any temples at these sites earlier. Courts are opening a Pandora’s box; if these cases are allowed to proceed, there is no end to how many petitions against mosques all over the country may be filed.”
The meeting resolved that people’s representatives in government positions must not use state machinery for religious purposes. Public money should not be used in religious functions. Examples of Yogi Adityanath lighting lakhs of earthen lamps on the eve of Deepawali and Narendra Modi performing consecration ceremony at Ram temple with entire government paraphernalia, including Indian Air Force helicopters, involved in it were mentioned.
The meeting also condemned hate speech for political mobilization while referring to a recent report from US says that 75% such cases have occurred in BJP-ruled states. SP-India rejects politics based on hate and abuse of religion, and demands that the government keep away from meddling in religious affairs.
National Vice President Syed Tahseen Ahmad, General Secretary Sandeep Pandey, Secretaries Faisal Khan and Abhay Sinha, Chairperson Parliamentary Board, Manjoo Mohan, senior socialist leader Jitendra Kumar Sharma, senior Gandhian Ramesh Sharma, Sehba Farooqui of CPI(M), Monica Yadav, Ph.D. student at JNU were main speakers.
