Intra-community fights over shrines not under PoW Act: SC

Intra-community fights over shrines not under PoW Act: SC
belalkhan10 (44) in wortheum • 38 minutes ago
In an important decision, the Supreme Court on Friday said two factions of one religious denomination, tussling for exclusive control their shrines to the exclusion of the other, cannot invoke the Places of Worship (Special Provision) Act, 1991, alleging alteration of the religious character of the common places of worship.
This order came on a petition filed by four individuals belonging to the Mohjit sub-sect of Tapagacch sect of Shwetamabar Murtipujak Jain denomination. Jainism, which had become popular as a protest against caste and sectarianism within Hinduism, is broadly divided into Shwetambar and Digambar factions and both having Murti and Non-Murtipujak sects. The Shwetambar Murtipujak faction has five sects - Tapagacch, Achalgacch, Paychalgacch, Khartargacch and Tri-Astutik.
Tapagacch community has two distinct streams - 'Ek Tithi' and 'Bey Tithi'. It is the fight between these two streams that was highlighted in the petitioners, who invoked Places of Worship Act to seek a direction for preservation of neutral character of Tapagacch community Jain Shrines for both streams and not to exclusion of one or the other, depending on a stream majority in the area of location of the shrine.