Bombay HC seeks Maharashtra govt's stand on reopening temples amid pandemic

A bench led by Chief Justice Dipankar Datta was hearing a Public Interest Litigation filed by a city-based NGO seeking that the state reopen temples and permit limited number of devotees at a time to enter the temples.

PTI

August 18, 2020 / 15:21 IST

The Bombay High Court on Tuesday directed the Maharashtra government to clarify its stand on reopening places of worship amid the coronavirus-enforced lockdown in the state.

A bench led by Chief Justice Dipankar Datta was hearing a Public Interest Litigation filed by a city-based NGO seeking that the state reopen temples and permit limited number of devotees at a time to enter the temples.

The court directed Advocate General Ashutosh Kumbhakoni to file an affidavit clarifying the state's stand over it.

Kumbhakoni, however, told HC that on August 12, the state filed a reply before another bench of the court saying it did not intend to open any place of worship currently as it would pose an imminent risk of spread of coronavirus.

While the above reply was filed in a petition seeking specifically that Jain temples be allowed to open for devotees to mark the ongoing festival of Paryushan, the state maintained the same stand on opening of any place of worship, "irrespective of its religion," Kumbhakoni said.

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