Bengaluru Idgah Maidan: Karnataka High Court permits government to consider allowing use for religious, cultural activities

The Karnataka High Court on Friday permitted the State government to consider and decide applications seeking use of the Idgah Maidan in Bengaluru's Chamarajpet for religious and cultural activities for a limited period [State of Karnataka v. The Karnataka State Board of Auqaf]..The order was passed by a Division Bench of Acting Chief Justice Alok Aradhe and Justice Savanur Vishwajith Shetty in the State's appeal against an interim order passed by a single-judge. Justice Hemant Chandangoudar had, in the order under challenge, only allowed Independence Day and Republic Day celebrations, use as public playground and use by the Muslim community to offer prayers on the days of Ramzan and Bakrid festivals as an interim measure. .However, this order was modified by the Division Bench to the extent of asking the government to consider applications for all religious and cultural activities while the dispute to the land was pending."The Indian Society comprises, religious, linguistic, regional or sectional diversities. The Constitution of India itself fosters brotherhood amongst various sections of the Society. The principle of religious toleration is the characteristic of Indian civilization," said the Court while ordering the modification. .The original petition was filed by the Karnataka State Board of Auqaf challenging an order of Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) refusing to computerise the land in the board's name, while saying that the land belonged to the State's Revenue Department.The petitioners argued that the property belonged to the Board by virtue of a notification from 1965 issued by the Mysore State Board of Wakfs which notified the land as Auqaf property. It was stressed that the same was binding on the State till it was set aside by the Wakf tribunal.The State, however, said that the notification was not binding on anyone and since the land did not belong to any person, the same was vested with the State..Justice Chandangoudar found that the question as to whether the notification issued under the Wakf Act, 1954 was binding on the State government required consideration. With this, the interim protection was granted on Thursday. The very next day, the interim order was challenged by the government seeking permission to decide on applications seeking to use the land for various religious and cultural activities. The State informed the Court that the Deputy Commissioner had received as many as five applications in this regard..The Division Bench modified the single-judge order while highlighting that the rest of the directions passed would be unaltered. "It is also clarified that the observations/findings have been made in this order only for the purpose of considering the prayer for interim relief and shall have no bearing on the merits of the matter either in this appeal or in the writ petition pending before the learned Single Judge," the order stated..The case is listed on September 12 for further hearing..Advocate General Prabhuling K Navadgi along with Additional Government Advocate SS Mahendra appeared for the State while the Board was represented by Senior Advocate Jayakumar S Patil along with Advocates Ajesh Kumar S and Srinidhi V..[Read Order]