The Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind has moved the Supreme Court seeking to intervene in a plea filed by a Mumbai resident opposing burial of people dying of COVID-19 in a graveyard near his residence.
Mumbai-resident Pradeep Ghandy has approached the apex courtafter his plea, made on the ground that burial of COVID-19 patients in thegraveyard in Bandra West would spread infection in adjoining areas, wasrejected by the Bombay High Court on April 27. Ghandy’s plea challenging thehigh court order will come up for hearing on May 4 before a bench of Justices RF Nariman and Indira Banerjee.
The Muslim body, while seeking intervention in the appealfiled by Ghandy, said that apprehension of burial of bodies of those infectedwith COVID-19 will risk the spread of such infection in the vicinity isunfounded and that at the outset there is no risk of spreading of the COVID-19virus during such burial.
“It is submitted that the burial of dead bodies is essentialto the religion of Islam as well as in other religions such as Christianity.Such a right forms part of the right to practice one’s religion under Article25 of the Constitution of India,” the plea said.The Muslim body said that it is a common myththat persons who have died of a communicable disease should be cremated, butthis is not true and cremation is a matter of cultural choice and availableresources.