BENGALURU: A division bench of Acting Chief Justice Alok Aradhe and Justice S Vishwajith Shetty of Karnataka High Court on Monday observed that the contention of the petitioner R Chandrashekar that contents of azaan violate the Fundamental Right of other faiths is unacceptable while disposing of the PIL.
The court said that Articles 25 and 26 of the Constitution embody the principle of religious toleration. However, the said right is not absolute but is subject to restrictions on the grounds of public order, morality, and health as well as other provisions in Part III of the Constitution, the court added.
The petitioner, a resident of Nagarabhavi Main Road in the city, himself has said in the petition that azaan is an essential religious practice in the Islamic faith but his contention that the contents of azaan violate the Fundamental Right guaranteed to the petitioner as well persons of other faiths cannot be accepted, the court said.
The court has directed the Chief Secretary, Home Department Secretary, DG&IGP and Commissioner of Police to ensure that loudspeakers and public address systems, and other musical instruments should not be permitted to be used above the permissible decibel between 10 pm and 6 am. The court also said that a division bench on June 17, 2022, had directed the officials to conduct a drive to prevent misuse of loudspeakers and public address systems, and the directions should be followed. A compliance report should be filed within 8 weeks, the court said.