Congress strikes SC to oppose pleas towards Locations of Worship Act 1991

“It could be related to say that on the time of the passing of the POWA, it was the applicant together with the Janata Dal social gathering that had been within the majority within the legislature for the tenth Lok Sabha. The applicant humbly submits that the POWA was enacted by the Parliament, because it mirrored the mandate of the Indian populace. In truth, the POWA had been envisaged previous to the yr 1991 and the identical was made part of the applicant’s then election manifesto for the parliamentary elections,” it stated.
The social gathering countered claims that the Act violates the proper to freedom of faith underneath Article 25 and cited the Supreme Court docket’s Ayodhya verdict, which said that the Act aligns with the obligations of a secular state.
The plea stated that the 1991 regulation upholds elementary rights underneath Articles 25, 26, 27, and 28, making it inside Parliament’s jurisdiction to enact.
“The current petition additionally erroneously states that the POWA is discriminatory as it’s relevant solely in the direction of members of the Hindu, Sikh, Jain and Buddhist communities. A naked perusal of the POWA reveals that it promotes equality amongst all non secular teams and doesn’t accord particular therapy 4 in the direction of particular communities as alleged by the petitioner…,” it stated.
It dismissed allegations of preferential therapy, pointing to Part 2(c) of the Act, which defines “place of worship” inclusively as temples, mosques, church buildings, gurudwaras, monasteries, or another locations of public non secular worship.