High Court today allowed Parsi community in Mumbai to offer Farvardiyan prayers
Bombay:
The Bombay High Court today authorized the Parsi community in Mumbai to offer Farvardiyan prayers at the Doongerwadi Tower of Silence in Mumbai for a day on Thursday after the Maharashtra government refused permission for the same.
The court also said his order should be treated as an exception, and that other leave seekers for any other religious event or prayer cannot use it as a precedent.
A bench of judges RD Dhanuka and MJ Jamdar granted the authorization on the condition that no one under the age of 10 or over the age of 65 be allowed on the premises as a result of the COVID-19 restrictions.
The bench also instructed participants to use masks, disinfectants on a mandatory basis and to follow standard operating procedures (SOPs) published by the Center and the Maharashtra government last month on the implementation of safety measures following of COVID-19.
As per the order, prayers will take place between 7:00 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. and no more than 200 people will attend.
At a given time, a maximum of 30 people will be allowed inside the premises.
The bench allowed the community to hold prayers after the state government denied permission to the Bombay Parsi Panchayat (BPP) for the same.
On Monday, the High Court ordered the state government to consider a representation made by BPP for the holding of prayers at the community temple here on September 3.
Following the directive from the high courts, the petitioner, BPP trustee Viraf Mehta and another trustee made a representation to the state government to seek permission for the prayers.
On Wednesday, the state informed the court that it had rejected BPP’s request.
Advocate General Ashutosh Kumbhakoni said the state refused permission because the petitioners insisted on a large number of attendees, instead of holding a “symbolic prayer.”
“We are not against any particular community. We ask them to stay home for their own safety. Our approach (to the state) is like that of the parents ” of citizens. We want them to be at home. immune to the virus, ”Kumbhakoni said.
Union government attorney Additional Solicitor General Anil Singh also said the Center is not opposed to any community’s festivities but only cares about public health and safety. in general.
The petitioner’s lawyer, Prakash Mehta, however, told the court that BPP would limit the number of people attending prayers and also take all safety precautions.
Mr Mehta said the Doongerwadi Tower of Silence in Kemps Corner, South Mumbai, covers an area of 55 acres.
The premises will be divided into five pavilions of 600 to 800 square feet each and only six people will be allowed inside each pavilion on an hourly basis, he said.
The court accepted the petitioners’ undertaking and granted permission to pray on Thursday.
However, he made it clear that his order should be treated as an exception and that other people requesting permission for any other religious holidays or prayers cannot use the current order as a precedent.
In accordance with the order, all participants’ temperatures will be recorded before entering the premises, and the use of masks and disinfectants will be compulsory.
The court also recorded the applicants’ claims that Parsis who died from COVID-19 had not been buried in Doongerwadi, the property was closed and no one other than the Parsis was allowed in.
Earlier, Viraf Mehta filed a plea last week through lawyer Shah, requesting special permission for prayers on the lines of the Supreme Court’s permission for the Jain community to open three temples in the city for their Paryushan festival.
Mr Shah told the court that the prayers were not part of the festivities, but were an annual ritual, during which members of the community remembered and paid homage to the deceased.
(Except for the title, this story was not edited by GalacticGaming staff and is posted from a syndicated feed.)
