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Another Public Interest Litigation plea filed before the Supreme Court has challenged the Places of Worship (Special Provisions) Act, 1991 while stating that the Act takes away the rights of Hindus, Jains, Buddhists, and Sikhs to restore their 'places of worship and pilgrimages', destroyed by barbaric invaders.
The PIL filed by former Member of Parliament, Chintamani Malviya through Advocate Rakesh Mishra states, "It excludes the birthplace of Lord Rama but includes the birthplace of Lord Krishna, though both are the incarnation of Lord Vishnu, the creator and equally worshiped all over the world."
The plea further alleges that the Act blatantly offends the right of Hindus, Jains, Buddhists, and Sikhs to restore, manage, maintain and administer the 'places of worship and pilgrimage' guaranteed under Article 26 of the Indian Constitution.
Additionally, the plea raises the following questions of law:
In a similar plea, the provisions of the Places of Worship (Special Provisions) Act, 1991 have been challenged stating that a mosque constructed on a temple land cannot be a mosque.
Another plea challenging the Places of Worship Act 1991 is pending before the Supreme Court filed by Advocate Ashwini Upadhyay which states that "the Act has taken away the power of the Court and Religious Sects to restore their places of Worship". Notice was issued on the petition in March of 2021.
In this plea, recently, Jamait Ulama-I-Hind filed an impleadment application before the Top Court.
Additionally, one more plea has challenged the 1991 Act stating that religious fundamentalists’ invasion on the land of India was always followed by the destruction of places of worship of eminence and a place of worship of different religious denomination was constructed or established over the ruins of the earlier structure and thus, each and every place of worship of eminence of Sanatan (Hindu) religion has one or more place of worship of a particular religious denomination in its vicinity.
Case Title: Chintamani Malviya vs. Union of India & Ors.
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