The court said the state has a duty to ensure that the rule of law prevails and that members of every community can perform religious worship at designated places of worship or on private property without requiring official permission.
The Allahabad High Court said the state must ensure communities can offer prayers peacefully at places of worship and cannot restrict the number of worshippers inside a mosque, according to an order concerning authorities in Sambhal, Bar and Bench reported.
A division bench of Justice Atul Sreedharan and Justice Siddharth Nandan criticised local authorities for allowing only 20 people to offer prayers at a mosque during the holy month of Ramadan, citing a potential law-and-order situation.
The court said the state has a duty to ensure that the rule of law prevails and that members of every community can perform religious worship at designated places of worship or on private property without requiring official permission.
Permission from authorities is necessary only when religious activities take place on public land or spill over into public spaces, the bench said.
The case arose from a petition alleging that state authorities were preventing Muslims from attending prayers at a mosque located on land identified as Gata No. 291 in Sambhal.
During the hearing, the court noted that the petitioner had not submitted photographs of the mosque. The observation came after the state told the court that there was a dispute over ownership of the site where the mosque is said to be located.
However, the state acknowledged that permission had been granted for only 20 worshippers due to what it described as a “perceived law and order situation”.
The bench rejected the justification, stating that if officials such as the superintendent of police or district collector believed they could not maintain law and order, they should resign or seek a transfer.
The court has asked the state government to respond to the petition and directed the petitioner to submit photographs and revenue records relating to the site.
The matter will be heard next on March 16.
Lawyer Wahaj Ahmad Siddiqui appeared for the petitioner in the case, titled Munazir Khan vs State of Uttar Pradesh.