General

In the Muslim community, the procession of Muharram is to take the Tajis to Karbala in which the community is attended by thousands of people. This practice is celebrated on 10 Muharram in most districts of U.P.

Public Interest Litigation (PIL) No. 840 (Roshan Khan and others vs State of UP and others) challenged the order of the government which banned the procession of Muharram by the state government on 23.08.2020 which will be out on 30. 08. 2020 Was

Petitioner advocate said order dated 10. 08. 2020 and order dated 23.08.2020 as discrimination

The pleading counsel made his stand and said that the Honorable Supreme Court had allowed the devotees to reach the places of worship and allowed an annual chariot procession at the Jagannath Temple, Puri. Also recently, Piyush prayers were allowed in three Jain temples in Mumbai. . It is further submitted that prohibition is particularly arbitrary when the proposed rituals can be regulated by prescribing 2 out of 7
Appropriate restrictions, such as limiting the number of people to carry fresh ones to Karbala for burial. It was submitted that in this way neither the transmission of covid-19 infection nor any chaos would arise.

Counsel appearing for the government said that the government orders are not discriminatory in nature in any way. Citing government orders dated 10.08.2020 and 23.08.2020, it was argued that restrictions have also been imposed on the Hindu community and they are required to raise any puja pandals or install any idol / idol or even That a ban has also been imposed during the procession. The festival of Ganesh Chaturthi and devotees were encouraged to celebrate the festival in their respective homes. Similarly, the Muslim community is also prohibited from carrying any Taziya or procession inside. Order to stop the spread of Kovid-19. He further said that restrictions have been imposed on all communities.

According to the order of the court, under the Constitution of India, the right to propagate and propagate religion has also been made subject to public order, morality and health. Despite the harsh lockdown, the epidemic continues to spread like wildfire. We stand naked on the shore and do not know when a giant wave of corona can take us into the deep sea. We really know what tomorrow is. There is a need to adopt safe practices to win over the health crisis. We need to understand the art of living with the corona virus.

The bench expressed anguish that it is not possible for us to lift the prohibition at these trial times, by providing any guidelines for regulating the mourning ritual / practice associated with the 10th day of Moharram.