Top court to examine if ASI-protected structures can be used as mosques

THE SUPREME COURT HAS EFFECTIVELY BROUGHT THE ASI-PROTECTED MONUMENT ISSUE INTO THE FOLD OF CONSTITUTIONAL CHALLENGE TO THE 1991 ACT

- Utkarsh Anand

NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Friday said that it will adjudicate whether a monument protected by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) can be used as a mosque, clubbing this legal issue with the ongoing batch of petitions challenging the constitutionality and scope of the Places of Worship (Special Provisions) Act, 1991.

The clarification came from a bench led by Chief Justice of India (CJI) Sanjiv Khanna, which is currently hearing a series of petitions challenging the 1991 act, a central piece of legislation that bars courts from entertaining disputes over the religious character of places of worship as they existed on August 15, 1947.

"In so far as the legal issue whether mosques covered under the ASI protected monument will come under the ambit of the 1991 Act or not is also a question pending before us in the other matter, and we will take all this together," said the bench, also comprising justices Sanjay Kumar and KV Viswanathan.

With the latest development, the Supreme Court has effectively brought the ASI-protected monument issue into the fold of the constitutional challenge to the 1991 Act.