Mumbai: The Bombay High Court has stated that the use of loudspeakers is not an integral part of any religion. The court clarified that under the Mumbai and Maharashtra Police Acts, as well as the Noise Pollution Rules and Environmental Protection Act, the police have the authority to take action against violations. A bench comprising Justices A.S. Gadkari and S.C. Chandak directed the Maharashtra government to enforce decibel-level limits without discrimination based on religion.
The bench observed that people generally do not complain about loudspeakers unless the noise becomes unbearable and causes distress. The court instructed the police to handle such complaints confidentially to protect complainants from targeted hate campaigns. It also recommended that the government instruct police to use mobile applications for measuring decibel levels. The bench further emphasized that if repeated violations of noise pollution rules are observed, permissions granted for the use of loudspeakers could be revoked.
The court was hearing a petition filed by the Jago Nehru Nagar Residents Welfare Association, highlighting noise pollution caused by loudspeakers and amplifiers installed in mosques and madrasas in areas such as Chunabhatti and Nehru Nagar, Kurla. The petition claimed that the noise levels from these devices were intolerable.
After hearing arguments from both sides, the bench noted that Mumbai is a cosmopolitan city with people of various religious beliefs coexisting in all its parts. The court reaffirmed that loudspeakers are not an essential component of any religion and instructed the police to take necessary action against noise pollution wherever it occurs.
