Loudspeakers equally harmful during Ganpati festival, Eid: HC

Mumbai: The Bombay High Court on Wednesday said that the use of loudspeakers and sound systems beyond permissible noise levels was harmful during the Ganpati festival as well as Eid-e-Milad-un-Nabi processions.
A division bench of chief justice DK Upadhyaya and justice Amit Borkar made the remark while hearing a public interest litigation (PIL) seeking a ban on the use of “DJs”, “dance” and “laser lights” during Eid-e-Milad processions. The PIL was filed by public spirited citizens Zuber Peerzade, Siddiqui Alam, Imran Shaikh and Gousemoddin Shaikh.
Owais Penchkar, the petitioners’ advocate, urged the court to direct civic bodies and the police to refrain from granting permission for use of such high-decibel sound systems, saying they were not prescribed in the holy books of Islam. He also urged the court to add Eid to an order passed last month, wherein it emphasised the ban on the use of sound systems and loudspeakers emitting noise levels beyond limits specified under the Noise Pollution (Regulation and Control) Rules, 2000 during festivals.
The court, however, said that this was not required as the order mentioned “public festivals”.
“If it is harmful for Ganesh Chaturthi, it is harmful for Eid also,” the court said disposing of the petitions.
On the use of laser lights, the bench asked Penchkar to show scientific evidence regarding their harmful effects on humans. “You should assist the court in giving effective direction. We are not experts. We do not know the ‘L’ of laser,” the bench said.
Pechkar said that though he did not have a conclusive study, he could provide the opinion of an expert on the matter.
“Why didn’t you do your research? How do we adjudicate such an issue unless it is proved scientifically that it causes harm to humans?” the bench said, chastising Pechkar, saying proper research should be done before such petitions are filed.