LUCKNOW: Samajwadi Party (SP) MP Iqra Hasan has approached the Supreme Court, seeking the proper enforcement of the Places of Worship Act, 1991. The apex court has accepted her petition and ordered its consolidation with other related cases.
Representing the Kairana constituency in Uttar Pradesh, Iqra Hasan urged the Supreme Court to uphold the provisions of the 1991 Act. Senior advocate Kapil Sibal presented her case before a bench led by Chief Justice Sanjeev Khanna and Justice Sanjay Kumar.
During the hearing, Chief Justice Khanna questioned the rising number of petitions on the matter, stating, “Why are so many new petitions being filed? Every week we receive a new petition.” Nevertheless, the court accepted Hasan’s petition and merged it with other ongoing cases.
Iqra Hasan emphasized that any deviation from the Places of Worship Act, 1991, would violate the principle of non-retrogression established in the Ram Janmabhoomi verdict. She argued that the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains Act, 1958, does not classify places of worship as “ancient monuments,” and attempts to do so would infringe upon fundamental rights under Articles 25, 26, and 29 of the Constitution.
She further highlighted the recent communal violence in Sambhal, triggered by a trial court’s order to survey a 16th-century mosque. Hasan criticized the court’s one-sided interim order, stating that such hasty judicial actions—without verifying legal and factual grounds—could deepen communal strife.
Hasan warned that repeated lawsuits targeting mosques and dargahs, along with judicial survey orders based on unverified claims, threaten India’s secular ethos. “Failing to address this disturbing trend risks damaging the secular fabric of this country,” she stated.
On December 12, 2024, a Supreme Court bench comprising Chief Justice Sanjeev Khanna, Justice PV Sanjay Kumar, and Justice KV Vishwanathan passed a crucial order restricting new lawsuits and survey directives against religious sites. The court also ruled that no interim or final orders, including survey orders, should be passed in ongoing cases like the Gyanvapi Mosque, Mathura Shahi Eidgah, and Sambhal Jama Masjid disputes.
The court’s directive was issued while hearing petitions challenging the Places of Worship (Special Provisions) Act, 1991, alongside petitions advocating for its enforcement.
