Withdrawal of judiciary from adjudication of religious matters will allow patriarchal clergy to take over | The Indian Express

Withdrawal of judiciary from adjudication of religious matters will allow patriarchal clergy to take over | The Indian Express

Written by A. Faizur Rahman |Updated: March 23, 2019 9:36:08 am

The writer is secretary general, Islamic Forum for the Promotion of Moderate Thought, Chennai.

Withdrawal of judiciary from adjudication of religious matters will allow patriarchal clergy to take over

Without going into the merits of the triple talaq and Sabarimala rulings cited by Mustafa, it may be pointed out that in both these cases certain religious practices were subjected to the essentiality test because those traditions.

The fact, however, is that our courts are not in the business of initiating religious reforms.

It was surprising to see seasoned legal commentator, Faizan Mustafa, make the argument that a recent Supreme Court judgment, overemphasising constitutional morality, tried to curtail the “freedom to irrational beliefs” that citizens enjoy as a fundamental right under Part III of the Constitution (‘Faith and gender justice”, IE, February 8). In his view, the Sabarimala protests proved that courts are ill-equipped to “initiate” reforms in faiths.