The Rajasthan High Court on Wednesday (14th February) is scheduled to hear a petition that challenged the decision to perform Suryanamaskar mandatorily in all the government schools across the state. The petition was filed on Monday (12th February) by several Muslim organizations who sought annulment of the State government’s order for mass Suryanamaskar in schools on 15th February.
The Muslim organizations who filed petitions under the banner of Muslim Forum include Jamaat-e-Islami Hind, Tehreek-e-Ulama Hind, Muslim Musafirkhana Committee, All India Milli Council, Jamiat Ulama Rajasthan and other Muslim organizations.
The petition filed by the organizations states that the government order is unconstitutional and violates Article 25 of the Indian Constitution which guarantees the freedom to profess, practice, and propagate religion to all citizens.
According to the reports, the decision to mandatorily perform Suryanamaskar is going to be implemented in all the government schools across the state from 15th February on the occasion of Surya Saptami.
Another organization, Jamiat Ulema e Hind meanwhile has called on students to boycott the program and not attend school on 15h February. They claimed that the required program directly interferes with anyone’s religious freedom. According to Jamiat’s state general secretary, Abdul Waheed Khatri, Hindus consider the Sun as a God, but in Islam, there is no one above Allah.
On the other hand, state education minister Madan Dilawar has stated that Suryanamaskar is not a religious practice and that a number of other countries have adopted the namaskar as a type of yoga, which is observed globally on June 21.