The Supreme Court has decided to hear a plea from AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi regarding the enforcement of the Places of Worship (Special Provisions) Act of 1991, which mandates maintaining the religious character of places of worship as they existed on August 15, 1947. This decision was made by a bench led by Chief Justice Sanjiv Khanna and Justice Sanjay Kumar.
Owaisi’s application, filed on December 17, 2024, through advocate Fuzail Ahmad Ayyubi, has been ordered to be consolidated with other ongoing cases related to the same law. The hearing is scheduled for February 17.
During the session, Nizam Pasha, representing Owaisi and the president of the All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM), highlighted that the judiciary is already addressing several petitions concerning the 1991 law and suggested that Owaisi’s fresh plea be tagged with these. Chief Justice Khanna acknowledged this by stating, “We will tag this.”
The 1991 Places of Worship Act is a pivotal piece of legislation that prohibits the conversion of any place of worship and ensures the preservation of the religious character as it was in 1947. This law has been a subject of contention, highlighted by various petitions, including a prominent one by lawyer Ashwini Upadhyay, which challenge its provisions.
On December 12, just days before Owaisi’s plea was filed, the Supreme Court had ordered a halt to all lower courts from processing any new suits or issuing any interim or final decisions in ongoing cases that seek to change the religious nature of places, especially targeting mosques and dargahs.
In his plea, Owaisi has urged the Central government to enforce the law effectively, citing recent examples where courts have directed surveys of mosques based on requests from Hindu litigants, his counsel explained.
