ORDER

Assailing the order passed by the respondent in and by which the mosque, which is present within the Cantonment area has been delineated strictly for the purpose of men connected with Uniformed Service by barring it for worship by the general public, the present petition has been filed.

2. W.M.P. No.19537/2021 has been filed praying to dispense with the production of the impugned proceedings of the respondent dated 29.6.2021 made in 4022/Dargha/Q31 on the representation dated 19.10.2020 and being satisfied with the reasons shown therein, this miscellaneous petition is ordered as prayed for.

3. It is the case of the petitioner that the Masjid E Aalishaan mosque, situate in T.S. No.1449/1, Usman Lane (Munro Lane), St.Thomas Mount, Chennai – 16, is a wakf notified under the Wakf Act published in the Government Gazette on 17.12.1958 which is used for worship by the defence personnel as also the civilian muslims since 1877. The land on which the mosque is situate is classified as A-1 Defence Land and the maintenance of the mosque premises lies with the regimental committee of the Officers Training Academy and the maintenance of the mosque lies with the Managing Committee of the mosque.

4. It is the further averment of the petitioner that the petitioner filed W.P. No.12149/1998 seeking a mandamus to forbear the respondent herein and others from interfering with the petitioner’s land and putting up construction of a compound wall, which petition was allowed on 21.4.08 against which W.A. No.1208/08 was preferred in which the Division Bench of this Court permitted construction of a boundary wall around the mosque and issued a slew of directions in relation to the worship to be carried out in the mosque, the relevant portion of which is as under :-

“5. We have heard the learned senior counsel appearing on behalf of the cantonment board and the learned senior appearing for the Union of India and the respondent-mosque and also perused the record. In view of the fact that the land in question is classified as A-1 defence land and the management is under the local military authorities and that the maintenance of the mosque premises lies with th regimental committee of the Officers Training Academy and the appellant has agreed to construct a boundary wall upto a height of three feet, if so required and that the aforesaid fact has been accepted by the learned counsel for the mosque, we are of the view that in public interest, in the interest of the military and Muslim community in general, the following directions will suffice:-

1) The appellant, including the competent authority of the cantonment board/Local Military Authority is allowed six months time to construct a boundary wall, minimum three feet high, around the mosque. It will be open to the cantonment board/Local Military Authority to construct a pucca road in front of the mosque by extending the existing road from East to West.

2) The cantonment board/Local Military Authority and its competent authority will maintain the boundary wall, premises of the mosque; but so far as the mosque is concerned, the management will maintain the mosque.

3) The cantonment board/Local Military Authority and its authorities should open one of the gate at 4.30 a.m., everyday, for Muslim community (followers of Islam) to offer nawaz at 5.00 a.m. The front gate of the mosque should be closed by 9.00 p.m., everyday, except during the period of Ramzan when it should be kept upen upto 10.30 p.m.

4) The respondent mosque, its management, its followers, who offer nawaz within the mosque are prohibited from taking any vehicle or other carrier inside the premises of the mosque without the prior permission of the cantonment board/Local Military Authorities and in case of disabled persons, the competent authority of the cantonment board/Local Military Authority may provide wheel chairs to carry disabled persons inside the mosque.

5) The order is passed in the interest of Muslim community, but in case of emergency,