'Stop morning Azan on loudspeakers'; Allahabad Uni VC writes to DM over 'disturbed sleep'

Allahabad University Chancellor Sangita Srivastava has written a letter to the District Magistrate of Allahabad on March 3 with regards to noise pollution in the civil lines area of Prayagraj due to 'Azan'. 

The letter read, "Every day in the morning at about 5:30 am her sleep is disrupted due to loud Azan on the mike by the Maulvi in the surrounding mosque. The sleep once disturbed does not resume even after trying very hard. This also results in a headache, throughout the day, causing losses in work hours. An old adage says 'your freedom ends where my nose begins' this holds true here. They may perform Azan without a mike so that others are not disturbed."

"Even before Eid, they announce Sehri on the mike at 4:00 am. This practice also creates a disturbance to other people. The constitution of India envisages a secular and peaceful coexistence of all communities, which needs to be practised in letter and spirit.  

Allahabad HC Allows ‘Azan’ In Mosques Without Loudspeaker

In May 2020, the Allahabad High Court had allowed the recitation of ‘azan’ by a single individual in Uttar Pradesh mosques without the use of any loudspeaker during the COVID-driven lockdown. A bench of justices Shashi Kant Guipta and Ajit Kumar granted the relief to the Muslim community saying “azan may be an essential and integral part of Islam” but its “recitation through loudspeakers or other sound-amplifying devices cannot be said to be an integral part of the religion.” The bench gave its ruling on a bunch of pleas, including those of former Union Law Minister Salman Khurshid and Lok Sabha members from Ghazipur, Afzal Ansari, among others. “We are of the considered opinion that azan can be recited by the muezzin (mosque caretakers) from minarets of the mosques by human voice without using any amplifying device and the administration is directed not to cause hindrance in the same on the pretext of the guidelines to contain the pandemic Covid¬19,” the bench ruled.