THE MADRAS HIGH COURT DISMISSED THE PLEA SEEKING RE-OPENING TEMPLES 

The Madras High Court bench has dismissed a petition seeking permission for the re-opening of temples across Madras. The court observed that the right to life stands first than the right to practice religion. The petition was restricted because of the rise in cases of the Covid-19.

While dismissing the plea, the bench passed the judgment "The right to practice religion is certainly subservient to right to life, and when the right to life is threatened, the right to practice religion can take a backseat."

The court further stated that the interference of the court can only be made when the state's action is utterly arbitrary. The decision of closing temples was taken while keeping various factors in mind as well as after obtaining expert advice.

While dismissing the plea, the court further said, ''Such a matter would be left to the State to obtain relevant data and expert advice before imposing restrictions or easing them. There does not appear to be any arbitrary action on the part of the State for the Court to interfere in the matter. Baby steps have to be taken to return to normalcy. It is better to err on the side of caution than to open up everything and be caught unaware as the country was when the second surge descended on us."

The court made a similar observation before when a plea was filed seeking re-opening of the courts.

Author: Papiha Ghoshal