After having failed to stop gods from taking over public places, police stations and even offices, the state government, if it is to be believed, has now set out to stop them, at least some of them, taking roots in rural areas!  After all, who is not aware of the temples dotting national highways and G.T. Road, many of which serve as sanctuary for the smuggling of narcotics.

.. The attempt may even have won the government some approval if it had the required credibility or honesty. But the secular figleaf, with which the controversial Bill is covered, was unceremoniously removed by the movers themselves when they declared that the objective of the Bill was to counter anti-national and ISI activities in the state. The text of the Bill, of course, says no such thing.

Had the government been sincere or wise, it would have provided for participation by members of different communities in deciding the desirability of having yet another temple or a mosque in a locality. Screening by the community and backed by the recommendation of its influential members would have provided a safeguard against the misuse of the law. But, deliberately or otherwise, the Bill leaves the entire discretion to the DM. And if the experience in UP is anything to go by, this species cannot be trusted. After all, it was a district magistrate who, in 1949, ordered the closure of the Babari Masjid ... The Bill makes it even worse by barring all judicial relief since no appeal to the law courts is allowed against the order of the DM or the commissioner who alone can hear an appeal.

Only deeply prejudiced or shortsighted minds can assume that terrorist and anti-national activities can be carried out only from mosques and madarsas. Even if one buys the argument, for argument, for argument's sake, the Bill can actually make no difference because such activities can surely continue unabated from the existing mosques or, for that matter, even homes. A similar legislation in Rajasthan, which has apparently existed for four decades, has clearly not been effective enough in curbing the 'all-powerful' ISI ... By the state government's own admission, during the last two decades, around 80 new mosques have come up in the border areas along Nepal extending to over 800 kilometres. Which practically means an average of eight mosques covering a length of 100 kilometres! Are eight mosques in twenty years worth creating a fuss, one wonders. The mushroom growth in the number of temples, mosques and mazaars are evidently linked to lack of employment opportunities ... That's why the Bill is a glaring admission of failure, of both governance and of social engineering ... The law is destined to be a dead letter, even if the courts uphold it, and will be resurrected from time to time by mischievous or fanatic elements within the establishment.  (Source: The Times of India, 10 January, 2000)