Explainer– What is The Place of Worship Act, 1991

The ongoing row over the Gyanvapi Mosque/Gyanvapi Gauri-Shringar Complex situated adjacent to the Kashi Vishwanath temple complex in Varanasi has once again brought the Places of Worship (Special Provisions) Act, 1991, to the fore.

The recent controversy began when five Hindu women filed a plea to worship idols within the Gyanvapi mosque complex. The plea claimed that the mosque was built after demolishing a temple that stood there in the 17th century.

Last month, a Varanasi court ordered a videography survey of the Gyanvapi Masjid complex after the five Hindu women filed pleas, seeking to worship behind the western wall of the premises. The report of the survey was initially ordered to be submitted by May 10. However, a delay was caused after the order was challenged by Uttar Pradesh Sunni Central Waqf Board and the mosque committee.

The Allahabad High Court, however, in April 21 order, declined to intervene in the survey, paving the way for petitioners to move to the Supreme Court.

The Muslim side has been referring to the Places of Worship (Special Provisions) Act, 1991 and its Section 4 which bars filing of any suit or initiating any other legal proceeding for a conversion of the religious character of any place of worship, as existing on August 15, 1947.

What is “The Places of Worship Act, 1991”?

Enacted by the Narasimha Rao government, the Places of Worship Act, 1991, seeks to prohibit the conversion of a place of worship and maintain its religious character as was at the time of India’s Independence on August 15, 1947. Section 4 (1) of the Act states: “The religious character of a place of worship existing on the 15th day of August 1947 shall continue to be the same as it existed on that day.”

The Act has been in force since July 11, 1991.

Section 3 of the Act bars the conversion of places of worship.

Section 4(1) of the Act states that "the religious character of a place of worship existing on the 15th day of August 1947 shall continue to be the same as it existed on that day".

Section 4(2) of the Act further states that "any suit, appeal or other proceedings with respect to the conversion of the religious character of any place of worship, existing on the 15th day of August 1947, is pending before any court, tribunal or other authority, the same shall abate, and no suit, appeal or other proceedings with respect to any such matter shall lie on or after such commencement in any court, tribunal or other authority".

Section 5 of the Act stipulates that the particular law does not apply to the Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid case or any suit, appeal, or other proceeding relating to it.

Besides the Ayodhya dispute, the Act also exempts any place of worship that is an ancient and historical monument or an archaeological site or is covered by the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains Act, 1958.

The Places of Worship 1991 law enactment

The Places of Worship (Special Provisions) Act was passed by the Parliament and enacted into law in 1991 during the peak of the Ram Janmabhoomi movement.

The Act was brought about by a bill introduced by the erstwhile Union Home Minister in the PV Narasimha Rao Cabinet, Shankarrao Bhavrao Chavan. The Act was passed when BJP leader LK Advani’s Rath Yatra for the Ram Janmabhoomi movement gained massive support.

Challenges to The Places of Worship 1991 law

BJP leader and lawyer Ashwini Kumar Upadhyay challenged the Places of Worship Act, 1991, last year in the Supreme Court. He said that the law was a contravention of the principle of secularism as laid down by the Constitution of India.

Another petition, filed by Vishwa Bhadra Pujari Purohit Mahasangh, challenging the validity of the Act is also pending with the Supreme Court.

What the Supreme Court said about the Places of Worship Act, 1991?

While delivering the Ayodhya verdict in 2019, the Supreme Court had referred to the Places of Worship Act and said that it manifests the secular values of the Constitution and strictly prohibits retrogression.

As events unfold it would be interesting to follow how arguments took place in court, with AIMPLB counting on the Places of Worship Act, 1991.