The Delhi High Court on Wednesday allowed reopening of four floors, including ground floor as well as three other floors, of the Masjid premises in Nizamuddin Markaz for offering of prayers on the festival of Shab e-Barat.
The Court on Wednesday allowed the reopening of the Masjid Bangle wali at Markaz premises for Shab-e-Barat after removing the condition of limiting the number of devotees proposed by the SHO Hazrat Nizamuddin Police station.
Justice Manoj Kumar Ohri allowed to reopen the ground and three other floors of the Masjid after hearing the contentions of the counsels of the applicants. The counsels had opposed the conditions proposed by the SHO for reopening of Masjid including limiting the number of devotees to less than 100 on each floor. The Court allowed the application modifying the conditions regarding the bar on foreign devotees, CCTV camera, Tablighi activities including others. “Now the matter will be heard on March 31, on the issue of opening for namaz during Ramzan,” he said.
The Court has asked the Delhi Waqf Board and Management Committee to follow the COVID-19 protocol and social distancing and to deploy volunteers with thermal scanner to check the temperature of the visiting devotees. “It is also asked the applicants will arrange the thermal scanners. Besides, it information regarding the conditions for foreigners will be displayed at every gate,” he said. The Court had asked the Delhi Waqf Board and others to file application before SHO police station Hazrat Nizamuddin for opening the Masjid Bangle Wale on Markaz premises. The parties on Wednesday apprised the court that the SHO has proposed certain conditions for the period of opening the Masjid including ensuring the people coming for prayers are fully COVID-19 vaccinated or asymptomatic.
The Counsels for the applicants opposed the conditions proposed by the police saying these are humiliating and not possible for devotees to be fulfilled. The Bench called the counsel for the central government Rajat Nair to appear physically.
Advocate Rajat Nair submitted that he has no objection on what was allowed in previous order of April 2021. It was allowed to offer namaz at first floor with 50 per cent capacity. This time the number can be increased, he said. Earlier, he had submitted that the offering of namaz by five people were allowed earlier. This can be done this year also in the religious festival, he added.
The counsel for the applicant/petitioner Delhi Waqf Board placed in record the order of February 26, 2022 issued by DDMA withdrawing all the COVID-19 restrictions. Advocate Wajeeh Shafiq counsel for the applicant had argued that the Markaz premises should be reopened according to the recent order issued by DDMA. “What DDMA has said about other religious places will govern this place also. It has been lying closed since 2020,” he said.
Senior Advocate Rebecca John appearing for Management committee argued that there no reason why there should be a restriction on the opening of the premises. Petitioner Delhi Waqf Board through advocate Wajeeh Shafiq has sought to reassess the necessity of keeping the Waqf premises, situated at Basti Hazrat Nizamuddin between Dargah Hazrat Nizamuddin and police Station Hazrat Nizamuddin, under their locks.
The petition said that the respondents have put the Waqf premises Masjid Bangle Wali, Madarsa Kashif-Ul-Uloom and the attached hostel situated as Basti Hazrat Nizamuddin, Delhi under their locks since March 31 2020.
