Maine Moilar and Others vs Islam Amanath and Others

We agree with the Courts below that the plaint discloses no cause of action. The plaintiffs wish to prevent the defendants, who are also

Muhammadans, from performing a service called ""kutbah "" in their own private mosque on Friday. The ground on which they seek to obtain a

permanent injunction is, not that, the performance causes annoyance or obstruction to them in the exercise of their own worship, but that it is

contrary to the Muhammadan religion. It is not the province of the Courts to determine what is or what is not contrary to the Muhammadan

religion, or to decide what religious service different sects of a community may hold in their own places of worship, provided the holding of such

services cause no disturbance or illegal annoyance to the rest of the community, or does not infringe on the rights of their co-worshippers. It is

argued that the Courts below should have decided whether the defendants were entitled to read the kutbah. In the case referred to by the District

Judge, this very point was put by the Judges of the Sadr Adalat to the Muhammadan Law Officers, who replied "" the performance of prayers on

Friday, in which the reading of the kutbah is included, is permitted alike in a mosque, or in a house, or in any other place which may be selected by

common consent."" The Puslars have, by common consent, selected, the Moidin Palli mosque as the place in which they will have the kutbah read,

and they were within their rights in so doing, it having been found that the vicinity to the plaintiffs'' mosque is not such as to cause either annoyance

or disturbance to the plaintiffs and their co-worshippers. This second appeal fails and is dismissed with costs.