SC defers hearing plea challenging provision of Places of Worship Act

The Supreme Court adjourned the hearing of a plea challenging Section 4 of the Places of Worship (Special Provisions) Act, 1991. The court will now hear the plea after four weeks.

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Friday deferred hearing a plea challenging a provision of a 1991 law that provides for maintaining "religious character" of holy structures as it existed on August 15, 1947.

The PIL, filed by 'Vishwa Bhadra Pujari Purohit Mahasangh' has sought directions to declare Section 4 of the Places of Worship (Special Provisions) Act, 1991 as ultra vires, meaning beyond its legal power or authority, and unconstitutional.

The plea was scheduled to come up for hearing today, but has been adjourned and will be heard after four weeks.

The petition, which has challenged Section 4 of the Places of Worship (Special Provisions) Act, 1991, assumes significance in the case of Kashi and Mathura where two disputed mosques stand.

The law also prohibits the conversion of any temple into a mosque and vice versa.

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The plea further said devotees have the fundamental right under Article 25 of the Constitution of India to worship the deity.

"The Parliament cannot restrain Hindu devotees to get back their religious places of worship through a judicial process and cannot make any law which takes away or abridges the vested religious right of devotees and cannot make any law with retrospective effect," it said.

(With inputs from agencies)