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Matam not for minors: Court

The direction was given during the hearing of a suo motu petition, taking objection to the injuries inflicted on children during the Muharram procession

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The Bombay High Court on Monday asked Shia Muslim community members who organise the Muharram procession to give a commitment to the Mumbai Police that they would not allow minor children to undergo self flagellation (matam). This year, Muharram is scheduled to be observed in the month of September.

A division bench of Justice RM Sawant and Justice Sadhana Jadhav has asked the Additional Commissioner of Police (South Region), Pravin Padwal, to call for a meeting with community leaders and resolve the issue once and for all.

The direction was given during the hearing of a suo motu petition, taking objection to the injuries inflicted on children during the Muharram procession.

In 2014, the court had converted a petition filed by Faizal Banaraswala and Abdul Rehman Qureshi into a suo motu petition. The two petitioners sought a ban on the procession, as children were being injured by sharp weapons.

It had raised concerns about people contracting diseases as the same knife or small sword was being used by more than one person. It also claimed that the matam was prohibited under the newly enacted legislation – the Maharashtra Prevention and Eradication of Human Sacrifices and Other Inhuman Evil and Aghori Practices and Black Magic Act.

Public prosecutor, Prajakta Shinde, informed the court that in 2015, an affidavit was filed stating, "The police has taken action against nine persons found inflicting self-injuries during the December 14, 2014, Muharram procession. They have been imposed a fine of Rs 1,200 by the Magistrate court. No child was injured during the procession."

To this, the bench said, "Since this is an annual thing, community members should jointly come to a consensus and resolve it once and for all, so that yearly regulation is not required."

The bench has now asked the police to hold a meeting and file a reply before the court on July 28.

Earlier, while hearing the same petition, the court had observed that, "Our concern is only about injuries caused to children, we don't want to interfere in religious rites, but at the same time we don't want the children to be injured."

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