Hot on the heels of the Supreme Court’s much-debated Sabarimala judgment, a petition has been moved in the Delhi High Court seeking an end to all practices discriminatory to women, and also the men, in all faiths and make the acts of discrimination a penal offence including the age-old isolation and ban on entering kitchen Hindu women face in their houses during menstruation.

Sanjjiiv Kkumaar, a social activist & director of an NGO Knewmax Benevolent Foundation, has moved the petition saying he was shocked at the comment made by Smriti Z Irani, Union Cabinet Minister of Textiles who had, on October 23, tweeted that “As a practising Hindu married to a practising Zoroastrian I am not allowed to enter a fire temple to pray”.

Here are the prayers the petitioner has made to ensure an end to the discriminatory religious practices:

*The petitioner has sought direction to the Centre to ensure that menstruating/non-menstruating women of any religion can enter and pray at Zoroastrian Fire Temple and Temple of Silence.

* Ensure that menstruating/non-menstruating women of any religion can enter and pray at men-only temple anywhere in India and allow men to pray in women-only Attukal Temple, Chakkulathukavu Temple, Santoshi Maa ‘Vrat’, Lord Brahma Temple, Bhagati Maa Temple, Mata Temple and Kamrup Kamakhya Temple.

* Ensure that menstruating/non-menstruating women of any religion can enter and pray at mosque along with men on Friday (Salat) and non-Friday prayers.

*Ensure that women of Muslim religion can observe fast and offer prayer in mosque during menstruation and denial of the same will be deemed as unconstitutional and will attract penal provisions.

* Ensure that women of Hindu religion can observe fast, enter kitchen, offer prayers or go to any place during menstruation and denial of the same will be deemed as unconstitutional and will attract penal provisions.

* Ensure that women professing Zoroastrian/Parsi religion can be ordained to priest and to declare that act of non-ordination of the same will be held unconstitutional and attract penal provisions.

*Ensure that women professing Hindu religion can be ordained to pujari/purohit/head of akhara.

*Ensure that women professing Islam religion can be ordained to imams of mosque and can lead mixed gender congregation of Friday Salat (prayer) and Non-Friday prayers.

*Ensure that women professing Christianity religion can be ordained to priest, bishop and deacon.

Read Petition: