State to discuss loudspeaker guidelines with all stakeholders: HM Walse-Patil

Director general of police (DGP) Rajneesh Seth on Tuesday held a review meeting with heads of the cities, districts and key police officials from the state.

Mumbai: The guidelines for use of loudspeakers at religious places could be delayed as the state government will consult all stakeholders, including political parties and religious organisations, on the issue. A day after state home minister Dilip Walse-Patil said that the guidelines will be issued in a couple of days, he stated that there was no deadline set. Guidelines will be issued after discussion with chief minister Uddhav Thackeray and various stakeholders, he said on Tuesday.

The Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) have stirred a row over the use of loudspeakers at mosques for azaan by demanding their removal. (HT PHOTO)

Director general of police (DGP) Rajneesh Seth on Tuesday held a review meeting with heads of the cities, districts and key police officials from the state. He is expected to submit his report to the home minister in a couple of days after which the issue will be discussed with the chief minister and other stakeholders.

The environment department of the state government is expected to issue the guidelines in consultation with the home department.

“We are considering holding deliberations with all the stakeholders on this very sensitive issue. The decision will be taken once the DGP submits the report. We are thinking of holding meetings with all the political parties and religious organisations before the guidelines are issued. There is no deadline to issue the notification for the guidelines, it could be on May 3, or before or after it,” Walse-Patil said on Tuesday.

The Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) have stirred a row over the use of loudspeakers at mosques for azaan by demanding their removal. Their stand has ratcheted up tensions across the state with MNS chief Raj Thackeray issuing an ultimatum and saying that loudspeakers from all mosques should be removed by May 3.

Walse-Patil on Monday had said that the notification for the guidelines will be issued in a couple of days. The senior police officials in the meeting convened by the DGP on Tuesday discussed the legal provisions and the court orders issued from time to time on the issue of the loudspeakers at religious places.

The Supreme Court had in 2016 stated that permission for the loudspeaker at any religious place was necessary. Bombay High Court, a decade ago, had directed the state government to maintain the permissible level of noise in religious places. The home department had also issued government resolutions in the past to press the implementation of the court orders.

The ultimatum given by MNS chief Raj Thackeray drew reactions from multiple religious and political organisations. Bhim Army gave a letter to DGP urging him to ban Raj Thackeray from giving speeches until the month of Ramzan is over, as his speeches are causing a divide in the society and may lead to communal clashes.

Raza Academy, a Muslim religious organisation, has written a letter to the Mumbai police commissioner requesting him to grant permission to the mosques that apply for loudspeaker permits. Mohammed Saeed Noori, secretary-general of the organisation, has said that they have requested mosques to adhere to the court orders issued from time to time.

Former Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) president Pravin Togadia on Tuesday said the BJP should remove loudspeakers from mosques in the BJP-ruled states first. “You are protesting in Maharashtra, but not removing loudspeakers in Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat,” Togadia said in Nagpur.

Meanwhile, Walse-Patil said that there were deliberate attempts by a few people and organisations to create communal tension in the country, including Maharashtra. “Police have been closely watching the situation and will take action against the people or organisations involved in attempts being made to create communal tension to divert the attention from the real issues of inflation, unemployment, among others,” he said.

On the central government’s decision of providing security to leaders like Raj Thackeray and Amravati MP Navneet Rana, the minister also said that providing the security to the people who are facing the cases is an encroachment on the rights of states.