Mamata’s allowance to Imams and Muezzins unconstitutional: Calcutta High Court. A hard slap on Mamata for her minority appeasement policy.
Upananda Brahmachari | Calcutta High Court | 02 Sept 2013::
In a very stringent manner Hon’ble Calcutta High Court today rejected
all orders and provisions for all unlawful matters in connection with
Imam and Muezzin honorarium, issued by West Bengal Govt, only for
appeasement policy of Smt. Mamata Banerjee (Islamically known as Mamtaz
Banu Arjee), the one eyed Chief Minister, hungry after Muslim Vote Bank.
A division bench of Justice Pranab Kumar
Chattopadhyay and Juartisce Murari Prasad Shrivastava gave the ruling
while hearing a petition filed by Acharya Yogesh Shastri on behalf of
Arya Samaj of Bengal unit [WP No. 9163 (w) of 2012] and other petitions
including a public interest litigation (PIL) filed by the state unit of
the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
The Calcutta High Court Monday declared
the monthly allowances given to Imams at the rate of Rs 2500/- and
muezzins at the rate of Rs 1000/- each by the West Bengal government as
unconstitutional.
Actually, the erratic Govt of West Bengal
was in mood to spend Rupees Eighty Four Crores every year for such
appeasement policy for Muslim clerics ignoring a severe fiscal crisis in
state economy.
A division bench of Justice Pranab Kumar
Chattopadhyay and Juartisce Murari Prasad Shrivastava gave the ruling
while hearing the petitions filed by different ends to oppose
discriminatory Imam and Muezzin Bhatta (honorarium) given by West Bengal
Govt. coming under a circumstances to appease the Muslim vote bank
politics.
“The court declared the allowance as
unconstitutional as it is violative of right to equality under Article
14 (of the constitution) and right against discrimination on grounds of
religion, under Article 15,” the petitioners’ counsel said.
“The court said the allowance was
violative of Article 282, as payments to the Imams and muezzins do not
constitute a public purpose as envisaged by the article,” added counsel.
The court, however, has not ordered
recovery of the allowances already paid. But, the designated bench
ordered earlier to recover the honorarium already paid to the Muslim
clerics subject the final decision of the court.
The Mamata Banerjee government April 2012
announced a monthly payment of Rs.2,500 to Imams or the clergy, and
followed it up by fixing Rs.1,500 monthly for the muezzins, those who
give the call for prayers at the mosques.
Discontent over the government announcement, Arya Samaj and others challenged its legality in Calcutta High Court.
Both the Communist Party of India-Marxist
and the Congress welcomed the court’s verdict, saying it has foiled the
“state government’s move to discriminate between people on the basis of
religion”.
However, a very communal Imam of city’s
Tipu Sultan Mosque Maulana Syed Noor Ur Rehman Barkati termed the
court’s verdict as “unfortunate”.
“It is an unfortunate verdict. Most of
the Imams and muezzins in the state are poor, does the court want them
to die of hunger? I believe along with Imams and muezzins, Hindu priests
should also be paid the allowances. Their condition too is pitiable,”
Barkati told the press.
In retaliation to the statement of
Barkati, Acharya Yogesh Shastri, the spokesperson of Bangiya Arya
Pratinidhi Sabha and one of the petitioners against Govt. to stop such
discriminatory and unlawful honorarium to Muslim, told Hindu Existence
that Imam Barkati is a very communal person and he has nothing to say
anything about Hindu or Arya priests, whatsoever. He has no regards to
Indian constitution or upon the verdict of Hon’ble Calcutta High Court
in various matters including banning cow slaughters in West Bengal. Such
persons are putting communal pressures on Mamata Banerjee to extracting
undue reservation and facilities for Muslim people and making the
environment so communal. Shastri opines that if Barkati wants to
register him as an impartial and secular one, he must raise his voice
for common civil code and denounce shariah law.
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