The Bombay High Court of India in a special hearing on Sunday dismissed a public interest litigation, which is a petition filed for public good, filed by four law students from Maharashtra
and Gujarat states challenging the decision of the Maharashtra government to declare January 22 a public holiday to mark the consecration ceremony of the controversial Ram Mandir temple in Ayodhya, Uttar Pradesh.

The judgment was delivered by the special bench of the High Court, consisting of Justices GS Kulkarni and Neela Gokhale, in Shivangi Agarwal & Ors. v. the Union of India & Ors. They rejected the plea, stating that it was “politically motivated” and an “abuse of the process of law.” Additionally, the bench advised the students to “utilise their time in doing better things.” The bench also observed that “such proceedings cannot be kept pending and are required to be dismissed with exemplary cost.” However, the bench did not impose any costs with the hope that the petitioners would be more careful in the future.

The petitioners submitted that the notification was arbitrary and against the public and economic interests of the country. Further, it was submitted that the petition was contrary to the secular principles of the Constitution of India. The Constitution of India, under Article 25, provides the citizens freedom of religion and ensures equal respect for all religions. The bench condemned the petitioners and called the petition “frivolous.” It ruled that the court is of constant view that “such decisions fall in the realm of executive decision.”

In 2019, the Supreme Court of India delivered a unanimous verdict on the long-standing dispute over the land in Ayodhya now occupied by the Ram Mandir. Tradition held that this site was the birthplace of the Hindu deity Ram, a belief contested by Muslims due to the presence of the Babri Masjid, a mosque constructed in the sixteenth century by Mughal Emperor Babur. The mosque was demolished by thousands of rioting Hindu pilgrims in 1992, who then attempted to build a makeshift temple in its stead.

The property conflict reached its resolution with the apex court’s decision, which granted the land for the construction of a temple dedicated to Ram. Five acres of land elsewhere in Ayodhya were allotted for the construction of a mosque in place of Babri Masjid.

On January 19 the Maharashtra government, exercising powers given by the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), announced a public holiday on January 22 on the occasion of the consecration ceremony of the Ram temple. Several other states, including Goa, Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh declared holidays for the occasion.

The Ram Mandir was consecrated in a nationally-broadcast ceremony led by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on January 22.