There was an uproar regarding the survey of Shahi Jama Masjid of Sambhal and Dargah of Khwaja Saheb of Ajmer. Congress is continuously opposing this. Congress made a big claim on Saturday regarding the Places of Worship (Special Provisions) Act 1991. Congress General Secretary Jairam Ramesh said that the former CJI had made oral comments in 2022 regarding the Places of Worship Act 1991. Because of this, a box of possibilities has opened up.
Jairam Ramesh also recalled the debate in the Rajya Sabha in 1991 regarding the Places of Worship (Special Provisions) Act 1991 in a post on He also shared the speech of Uttar Pradesh Janata Dal MP and writer Rajmohan Gandhi in the Rajya Sabha at that time.
Ramesh wrote in the post on X that on 12 September 1991, the Rajya Sabha debated a bill which became the Places of Worship (Special Provisions) Act, 1991. It is in the news these days because of the recent verbal comments made by the retired Chief Justice. India on 20 May 2022 DY Chandrachud has since opened a Pandora’s box. He wrote that the best speech in the history of Rajya Sabha was given by Rajmohan Gandhi during the parliamentary debate in 1991. It was also a masterclass in Indian culture, traditions, history and politics. His brilliant speech with that beautiful passage from the Mahabharata continues to hold relevance.
The Congress leader also shared some photos of Gandhi’s speech. Gandhi had said in the speech that the lesson of the Mahabharata resonating across the centuries is that those who seek to correct the wrongs of history with a spirit of revenge will only create destruction and more destruction and more destruction.
The Places of Worship (Special Provisions) Act prohibits places of worship from being altered as they existed on August 15, 1947. However, in 2019, regarding the Ayodhya verdict, the Supreme Court had said that Section 3 of the law did not clearly prohibit ascertaining the religious character of a place of worship. On May 20, 2022, the Supreme Court made oral comments while hearing the dispute related to Gyanvapi Mosque. The court had said that ascertaining the religious character of a place of worship is not prohibited under the Places of Worship (Special Provisions) Act.
At the same time, the Congress Working Committee protested against the Sambhal and Ajmer Masjid survey. Congress reiterated its commitment to the Places of Worship Act. The Congress said the Act was brazenly violated by the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).