The Indian Supreme Court has directed that no new suits can be registered against places of worship until further notice, as it hears petitions related to the Places of Worship Act, 1991. The Act prohibits the conversion of any place of worship and mandates that the religious character of such sites must remain as it was on August 15, 1947. This ruling was issued on Thursday by a bench comprising Chief Justice Sanjiv Khanna, Justice Sanjay Kumar, and Justice K. V. Viswanathan, who also clarified that pending cases should not proceed with any “effective interim or final orders” until further instructions are issued.
The Supreme Court’s decision comes amidst growing legal challenges, with Hindu groups filing petitions claiming that several prominent mosques were built over temples. One recent case involved a petition to survey the 13th-century shrine of a Muslim saint in Ajmer, Rajasthan, while another in Sambhal, Uttar Pradesh, called for a survey of the Shahi Jama Masjid. This petition claimed the mosque was constructed on the site of a former Hindu temple. The survey in Sambhal led to violent clashes that resulted in at least five deaths and several police injuries, prompting the Supreme Court to intervene and halt the proceedings.
The controversy also includes demands for a survey of the Jama Masjid in New Delhi, with some Hindu groups alleging that statues of Hindu deities were buried within the mosque. These developments have sparked concerns over the growing influence of Hindu nationalist sentiments, especially following Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s inauguration of a new Hindu temple in Ayodhya, built on the site of the demolished Babri mosque. The Babri demolition in 1992 led to violent riots, with thousands of Muslims killed, and continues to shape the sectarian tensions in India.
As the legal proceedings unfold, the Indian Muslim community faces increasing anxiety, as calls for Hindu supremacy have gained momentum under Modi’s leadership, raising concerns over the future of the country’s Muslim minority.
