Places of Worship Act does not bar acquisition of religious sites for public purpose, says Allahabad HC

The Allahabad High Court on Thursday (July 2, 2026) held that the Places of Worship (Special Provisions) Act, 1991, protects the religious character of places of worship but does not prohibit the State from acquiring such properties for a genuine public purpose, such as road widening or infrastructure development.

The observation was made by a Division Bench of Justice J.J. Munir and Justice Arun Kumar while dismissing a petition filed by six Muslim shopkeepers from Varanasi’s Dalmandi area challenging the proposed road-widening project linked to the Kashi Vishwanath Corridor. The petitioners alleged that the project would lead to the demolition of their shops, which they said were their sole means of livelihood.

The petitioners had also sought a direction restraining the State from acquiring six mosques in the Dalmandi area which include Anjuman Intezamia Masjid, Masjid Rangile Shah, Masjid Ali Raza Khan, Masjid Karimullah Baig, Masjid Nisaran and Masjid Sangamarmar, as they claimed those mosques had existed before August 15, 1947. They argued that any acquisition of these mosques would violate the Places of Worship Act.

Rejecting the contention, the court held that the 1991 law was enacted to preserve the religious identity of places of worship as they existed on August 15, 1947, by preventing their conversion from one religion to another. It said the legislation is confined to maintaining the religious character of places of worship and does not restrict the State’s power to acquire land for a legitimate public purpose.

“….Act of 1991 prohibits the conversion of place of worship of one religious denomination into another. It does not derogate from the State’s authority to acquire any place of religious worship for a secular and public purpose, like development of a road or augmentation of infrastructure or any similar activity,” the Bench observed.

The court also examined Section 51 of the Waqf Act, 1995, as amended, which permits acquisition of waqf properties for a public purpose, subject to consultation with the Waqf Board and other statutory safeguards.

The court also termed the requests of the petitioners, who stated that the demolition is targeted to a particular community, as ‘odd’ while dismissing the plea.

It was further held that the petitioners, being tenants and not the mutawallis or custodians of the mosques, lacked the locus standi to seek protection of the religious structures. However, it chose to examine the legal issue because the petitioners had strongly argued that the Places of Worship Act operated as an “all-time shield” against acquisition.

Clarifying the scope of its ruling, the Bench said its observations would not prejudice the rights of the State, the Waqf Board or the mutawallis of the mosques to pursue appropriate remedies in future proceedings.