Sonal Bhargava | Prabhat Bandhulya
The Karnataka High Court in the case of Rakesh P v State of Karnataka on Friday sought a response from the State government on the allegations that loudspeakers in mosques were being granted permanent licences by police authorities in contravention of law. "You show under what provisions the licence for running loudspeakers can be granted, and which authority is authorised. Second, what exercise you have done to ascertain that no illegal loudspeakers are there," the bench stated. The petitioner was also asked to submit evidence to support his position regarding the supposed permanent licensure. As a result, the court was assured that material will be entered into the record before the next hearing date. In addition, the petitioner requested that the Karnataka State Pollution Control Board provide an affidavit declaring that the loudspeakers were not being utilised in contravention of the 2000 Rules. The Court, on the other hand, believed that the board could not carry out such an exercise on its own. With this, the Court gave the government time to respond to the petitioners' arguments and scheduled the case for next week.