Saibaba temple at Shirdi says it will follow Supreme Court norms on loudspeakers

PUNE: Amid a row over the use of loudspeakers by mosques and other religious structures in Maharashtra, trustees of the Saibaba temple at Shirdi on Thursday said they would follow the Supreme Court's guidelines during the early morning and late night 'aarti'.

Mosques in the temple town too desisted from using loudspeakers on Thursday morning.

Ahmednagar Police has asked all religious structures in the district, including the Saibaba temple which attracts millions of devotees every year, to implement the Supreme Court's guidelines on loudspeakers, an official said.

Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray's appeal to people to play the Hanuman Chalisa outside mosques if loudspeakers were continued to be used for the `azaan' (Islamic call to prayer) has currently roiled politics in the state.

"As per the SC guidelines, the use of loudspeakers is prohibited between 10 pm and 6 am. We held meetings with various religious places including Saibaba Temple Trust and apprised them of the rule," said a senior police official.

Following the meeting, loudspeaker was not used during the early morning 'kakad aarti' at the Saibaba temple on Thursday morning, he said.

"Likewise, no mosque in Shirdi town used loudspeaker during the early morning 'azaan'," he added.

Bhagyashri Banayat, chief operating officer of the Saibaba Temple Trust, said they will follow all the guidelines.