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Solicitor General (SG), Tushar Mehta and Fali S Nariman, Senior Advocate today jointly informed the Supreme Court that the government and the Mumbai Parsi Panchayat have reached a settlement in the plea pertaining to traditional cremation for the victims of COVID-19 belonging to the Zoroastrian community.

SG Mehta mentioned the matter just as the bench of Justices Chandrachud and Surya Kant were to rise for the day. Nariman asked the court to pass an order recording the settlement, he further informed the court that a document detailing the terms of settlement have been circulated to the court.

The SG submitted that the apprehension of the government was that in traditional Zoroastrian Dokhmenashini  (i.e. Zoroastrian process of disposal of the dead through Consecrated Towers of Silence at the hands of trained corpse-bearers-Nassasalars) birds have access to the dead body and may end up becoming carriers of the virus.

The SG submitted that the Mumbai Parsi Panchayat (which is in charge of all the Towers of Silence) has agreed to installing iron bars so that the birds don’t have access to the body, he further submitted that the Panchayat has stated that exposure to the sun is the most important aspect of the the Zoroastrian Dokhmenashini and hence a settlement has been reached where the members of the community can perform their traditional funeral ceremony while being compliant with the COVID-19 protocols of the government.

The court on hearing the submissions of the parties recorded the terms of settlement and disposed off the pleas.

On January 17, the top court had suggested the Parsi Community to convene a meeting with Solicitor General Tushar Mehta to resolve the issue of traditional cremation for members of the Parsi community who succumbed to COVID-19.

Surat Parsi Panchayat has filed a plea challenging the Gujarat High Court’s order denying traditional cremation for members of the Parsi community who succumbed to COVID-19

According to the plea, the panchayat had for months before the filing of the Writ Petition before the High Court,had repeatedly sought permission from the authorities to dispose of the dead bodies of Parsi victims who succumbed Covid 19 according to traditional Dokhmenashini. The petition further claims that the panchayat had addressed 4 successive letters/representations dated 19th May 2020, 25th May 2020 , 29th July 2020 and 5th May 2021, the petition claims that to none of these communications were acknowledged to let alone replied to.

The petition further states that representation of 19th May 2020 and 5th May 2021 included the opinion, both of the High Priest of Bombay and as well as that of the High Priest of Surat, stating that that the performance of Dokhmenashini according to the Zoroastrian religion (i.e. Zoroastrian process of disposal of the dead through Consecrated Towers of Silence at the hands of trained corpse-bearers-Nassasalars) was part of a basic fundamental and crucial belief of the Zoroastrian faith and was one of the most important pillars of the Zoroastrian faith. The petition further states that the court was also sought to declare that the Government of India “Covid – 19: Guidelines on dead body management”  dated 15.03.2020 does not prohibit the Parsi Zoroastrians to perform the last rites of any of its member who have died due to COVID 19 in accordance with their religion.”

Case title: Surat Parsi Panchayat Vs Union of India