CIC observes 'Salary to Muezzins and Imams from taxpayer money violates Constitution'

In a historic order, the Central Information Commission called the 1993 Supreme Court order allowing remuneration to imams and muezzins as violative under Article 27 of the Constitution of India. It also stated that the judgement has set a "wrong precedent" and has become a point of unnecessary political slugfest and social disharmony in society.

Hearing a Right to Information (RTI) application seeking details of salaries to imams by the Delhi government and the union territory's waqf board, Information Commissioner Uday Mahurkar observed that the top court's order violated constitutional provisions that say "taxpayers money will not be used to favour any particular religion".

The CIC stated, "The judgment by the Supreme Court in the case between 'All India Imam Organisation And...vs Union Of India And Ors' on 13 May 1993, opened the doors to special financial benefits from public treasury to only Imams and muezzins in the mosques, the Commission observes that the highest Court of the country in passing this order acted in violation of the provisions of the Constitution, particularly Article 27, which says that the taxpayers' money will not be used to favour any particular religion. The Commission notes that the said judgment set a wrong precedent in the country and has become a point of unnecessary political slugfest and also social disharmony in the society."

On a petition from the All India Imam Organisation, the Supreme Court in 1993 directed the waqf board to give remuneration to imams in Mosques managed by it.

The Information Commissioner has demanded that a copy of his ruling be sent to the Union Law Minister Kiren Rijiju with the commission's recommendation for suitable action to ensure enforcement of provisions of Articles 25 to 28 of the Indian Constitution in letter and spirit to keep all religions on par in terms of monthly remuneration to priests of different religions at the cost of the public exchequer (both central and states) and also other matters.

He also directed the Delhi Waqf Board to pay Rs 25,000 compensation to RTI activist Shubhash Agrawal for the loss of time and resources in pursuing the response to his application. The activist was not being able to get a satisfactory response to his application.

"It is necessary to go into the history when it comes to giving special religious benefits to the Muslim community by the State. A religious (Islamic) nation Pakistan was born out of the demand of a section of Indian Muslims for the partition of India along religious lines. Despite Pakistan choosing to be a religious (Islamic) nation, India chose a Constitution guaranteeing equal rights to all religions," Mahurkar said.

"It is necessary to note here that it was the policy of giving special benefits to the Muslim community before 1947 that played a key role in encouraging pan-Islamic and fissiparous tendencies in a section of Muslims, ultimately leading to the nation's partition," he added.

The Information Commissioner said that giving remuneration to imams and others only in Mosques, amounts to "not just betraying the Hindu community and members of other non-Muslim minority religions, but also encouraging pan-Islamist tendencies amongst a section of Indian Muslims which are already visible."

He noted that the Delhi Waqf Board's monthly income is just Rs 30 lakh while it gets Rs 62 crore in annual grants from the Delhi government.

"So the monthly honorarium of Rs 18,000 and Rs 16,000 being given to the imams and muezzins of DWB mosques in Delhi is being paid by the Delhi government virtually from the taxpayers money which in turn is in sharp contrast with the example quoted by the appellant in which the priest of a Hindu temple is getting a paltry Rs 2,000 per month from the trust controlling the said Temple," he said.

Meanwhile, Mahurkar has directed the Delhi Waqf Board and Delhi Chief Minister's office to provide responses to the RTI application of Agrawal.

(With PTI inputs)