Plea In Delhi High Court Demanding Women's Entry Into Nizamuddin Dargah

Even as Sabarimala in Kerala continues to simmer over the Supreme Court verdict that allowed women of all ages to enter the Lord Ayyappa shrine, women law students have filed a plea with the Delhi High Court seeking directions to the Centre and other authorities to allow the entry of women into the sanctum sanctorum of Hazrat Nizamuddin Aulia Dargah in Delhi.

The PIL, that is likely to come up for hearing next week, claims that a notice put up outside the dargah states that women are not allowed inside.

These law students were in Delhi to visit the Nizamuddin dargah but found out that it did not permit them to enter the main shrine. 

The petition claims that the law students tried to reach out to authorities over the matter, including the Delhi Police. But on not receiving any response from them, they moved the high court. 

The plea that was filed by Kamlesh Kumar Mishra has sought directions to the Centre, Delhi government, police and the trust managing the Nizamuddin shrine, to frame guidelines that can ensure the entry of women into the dargah and declare this bar on entry of women as "unconstitutional".

Evoking the Supreme Court verdict on Sabarimala, the Pune-based law students said that women in the heart of the national capital were being discriminated against as they are not allowed to enter the dargah.

"Nizamuddin Dargah by its very nature is a public place and prohibition of entry of anyone in a public place on the basis of gender is contrary to the framework of the Constitution of India," the petition said. 

The plea said that various other shrines like Ajmer Sharif Dargah and Haji Ali Dargah did not prohibit entry of women.