HC allows women’s entry in Haji Ali dargah

Mumbai, Aug 26 (PTI) In a significant judgement, theBombay High Court today lifted the ban imposed on women fromentering the sanctum sanctorum of Haji Ali dargah here, sayingit contravenes the fundamental rights of a person. The court has, however, stayed its order for six weeksfollowing a plea by Haji Ali Dargah Trust, which wants tochallenge it in the Supreme Court. "The ban imposed on women from entering the Haji Alidargah is contrary to Articles 14, 15, 19 and 25 of theConstitution of India. Women should be permitted to enter thedargah on par with men," a division bench of Justices V MKanade and Revati Mohite Dere said. Under the said Articles, a person is guaranteed equalitybefore law and has the fundamental right to practice anyreligion he or she wants. They prohibit discrimination ongrounds of religion, gender and so on, and provide freedom ofconscience and free profession, practice and propagation ofreligion. The bench allowed a PIL filed by two women, ZakiaSoman and Noorjehan Niaz, challenging the ban on women’s entryin the sanctum sanctorum of the dargah. "The state government and the Haji Ali Dargah Trustwill have to take proper steps to ensure safety and securityof women entering the dargah," the court said. The high court had in June this year reserved itsverdict on the petition. The PIL states that gender justice is inherent inQuran and the decision contravenes the Hadith, which provesthat there is no prohibition on women visiting graves. The Maharashtra government had earlier told the courtthat women should be barred from entering the inner sanctorumof Haji Ali dargah only if it is so enshrined in the Quran. The ban on women’s entry cannot be justified if it ison the basis of an expert’s interpretation of the Quran, thethen Maharashtra Advocate General Shrihari Aney had argued. The dargah trust had defended its stand saying that itis referred in Quran that allowing women close proximity tothe dargah of a male saint is a grievous sin. Advocate Shoaib Memon, appearing for the trust hadearlier said, "Women are not allowed inside mosques in SaudiArabia. They are given a separate place to pray. We (trust)have not barred women. It is simply regulated for theirsafety. The trust not only administers the dargah but alsomanages the affairs of religion." PTI SP GKRT