Madras HC: State Can't Act on Superstition, Orders Return of Seized Hindu Idols
India
M
Moneycontrol•05-01-2026, 16:17
Madras HC: State Can't Act on Superstition, Orders Return of Seized Hindu Idols
- •Madras High Court ordered the return of Hindu idols seized from A Karthik's private residence in north Chennai.
- •Authorities had removed the idols after residents linked their worship to a series of "unnatural deaths" in the neighbourhood, citing superstition.
- •Justice D Bharatha Chakravarthy ruled that the State cannot act on unscientific public fears and must promote scientific temper.
- •The Court emphasized that peaceful private worship cannot be curtailed by superstitious beliefs and that God or idols do not harm humans.
- •Idols were ordered returned with conditions: no loudspeakers, noise pollution, disturbance to neighbours, or collection of money.
Why It Matters: Madras HC upholds private worship rights, rejects state action based on superstition over "unnatural deaths".
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