Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Saturday rejected the demands of BJP ministers and MLAs seeking a ban on loudspeakers in mosques.
Talking to media persons after attending an Iftar party in Patna, the chief minister said that it was a non-issue in Bihar. According to Nitish, such demands are nonsense and have no relevance in the state.
Nitish said he was not in agreement with the suggestion of his BJP ministers who are demanding the withdrawal of loudspeakers from the mosques.
When asked, some states have already pulled down loudspeakers and dropped the noise level during religious preachings, Nitish said, "it is irrelevant in Bihar."
Former chief minister Jeetan Ram Manjhi, whose party HAM is a partner in NDA said, "politics of ghari ghant (bells sounds from the temples) should not be applied, no one should try to hurt the religious sentiments."
Principal spokesman of JDU and MLC, Neeraj Kumar in a statement today said, "demand for a ban on loudspeakers on mosques has come during Ramzan festival, this shows people with dirty minds were playing politics only."
Neeraj added that there was pollution in the minds of those demanding ban on loudspeakers in mosques and that they were not concerned with noise pollution.
The JDU leader said that the loudspeakers were being used in the temples and mutts in the wee hours during Aarti and early morning prayers too.
Janak Ram, the BJP minister for Mines and Geology Friday had demanded a total ban on loudspeakers from the mosques and recommended they should be withdrawn. Ram regretted Muslims were allowed to perform their namaz even on busy roads and streets, there was no restriction on the noise pollution coming out of the mosques.
BJP MLA Harikrishna Thakur too demanded a ban on loudspeakers for religious preachings and said Muslims were allowed to have their Friday namaz on the campus of LN Mithila University at Darbhanga.
He was supported by BJP MLA from Darbhanga Sanjay Sarogi, who regretted the misuse of the University campus for religious discourse.
Meanwhile, the management of the Takhat Harmandir Saheb, the birthplace of Guru Gobind Singh Ji here, has lowered the volume of the loudspeakers.
Jathedar Ranjit Singh, the management authority, voluntarily lowered the volume of the loudspeakers in honour of the restrictions ordered by the Supreme Court. "Management is concerned over noise pollution, hence the volume has been lowered," Jathedar said.
