The Delhi Supreme Court on Wednesday allowed the reopening of three floors of Nizamuddin Markaz, where Tablighi Jamaat congregation was held in March 2020 amid the COVID-19 pandemic and has remained closed since so that devotees can offer prayers during Shab- e-Barat.
Justice Manoj Kumar Ohri removed the restriction to set a limit of 100 people on one floor and said it was agreed that the mosque’s management will ensure compliance with COVID-19 protocols and social distancing while devotees allowed to enter the mosque to offer namaz.
While the Delhi police imposed several conditions during the reopening of Markaz on the occasion of Shab-e-Barat, several of them were changed during the court hearing by mutual agreement of the police, the Delhi Waqf Board and the mosque’s management committee.
The court noted that the ground floor and three other floors of the mosque building will open at 12 noon the day before Shab-e-Barat, which is March 18, and close at 4 p.m. the following day.
The court, hearing a request from the Delhi Waqf Board to open the mosque in view of Shab-e-Barat and Ramzan in March and April, adjourned the case on March 31 to decide the issue of reopening the mosque. mosque during Ramzan starting on April 2.
Regarding the condition imposed by the police that foreign citizens and OCI cardholders are not allowed to enter the Markaz premises and if any devotee of foreign origin or OCI cardholder intends to offer namaz at Masjid Bangley Wali, his identity details along with ID proof will be taken by management and submitted to the SHO, management said it will post a notice on the display board at the entrance gate stating this restriction.
While the police, through lawyer Rajat Nair, initially said that tablighi activities will not be allowed during the reopening period, it was later agreed between the parties that the opening of the mosque will be limited only for offering prayers.
The court has been informed that CCTV cameras have already been installed at the entrances and exits of the property and management will ensure that devotees are screened with portable thermal scanners at the entrance.
While senior advocates Sanjoy Ghose and Rebecca John, who represent the Delhi Waqf Board and the mosque’s management committee respectively, initially claimed the police letter is silent on the settlement to be made during Ramzan, Nair said modalities for that would be worked out after Shab. -e-barat.
The Supreme Court had asked the Delhi Waqf Board, represented by lawyer Waqeeh Shafiq, on March 14 to apply to the SHO of Hazrat Nizamuddin Police Station to request permission to open the other three floors of Nizamuddin Markaz to allow devotees to be able to say prayers during Shab-e-Barat and Ramzan.
Police counsel had previously said he has no objection to having 50 people pray on the first floor of the mosque, but the opening of the entire mosque cannot be allowed.
He had referred to the Supreme Court ruling of April 15, 2021, which allowed 50 people to perform the Namaz five times at Masjid Bangley Wali on the first floor.
The Center, in its recent affidavit, has opposed the full reopening of the Nizamuddin Markaz and stated that a few people may be allowed to pray at the upcoming religious occasions.
Counsel for the Delhi Waqf Board had previously said the mosque, which is under the Delhi Police’s lock, is to be opened after the Delhi Disaster Management Authority (DDMA) has now lifted all restrictions imposed by the pandemic.
Several FIRs were registered under the Epidemic Diseases Act, the Disaster Management Act, the Foreigners Act and various provisions of the Penal Code related to the Tablighi Jamaat event in the Nizamuddin Markaz and subsequent stay of foreigners there during the COVID-19 lockdown in 2020.
In its petition, the Governing Council said that on these two occasions last year – Shab-e-Barat and Ramzan – the Supreme Court had allowed prayers in the mosque.
It has said the current form of COVID-19, Omicron, was not as severe and deadly as the Delta variant and that as conditions have improved, physical hearings have resumed from all courts, schools, clubs, bars and markets as well. reopened, therefore there is no impediment to immediate reopening of this waqf property.
The application was filed in the petition of the board of directors, which has requested the reopening of the premises, alleging that even after the unlocking guidelines, religious sites could be opened outside the containment zones, the Markaz – comprising the Masjid Bangle Wali, Madarsa Kashif -ul- Uloom and the neighboring hostel are still locked up.
On April 15, 2021, the court had allowed 50 people to offer namaz five times a day in Nizamuddin Markaz during Ramzan, saying there is no direction in the DDMA notification to close places of worship.
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