SC dismisses Syed Waseem Rizvi’s PIL that sought deletion of certain verses from the Holy Quran

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The Supreme Court of India has dismissed the controversial public interest litigation (PIL) which sought deletion of certain verses from the Holy Quran which the petitioner Syaed Wseem, former chairperson of the Shia Waqf Board, alleged “violate the law of the land and promote extremism”. According to a report in the Bar and Bench, the case: Syed Waseem Rizvi v. Union of India, was heard by a Bench of Justices Rohinton Fali Nariman, BR Gavai and Hrishikesh Roy which not only dismissed the PIL but also imposed costs of Rs. 50,000 on the petitioner Rizvi.

A former chairperson of Shia Central Board of Waqf, Uttar Pradesh, Rizvi, had alleged that certain verses in the Quran promote violence and are “a threat” to the sovereignty, unity, and integrity of the country. He sought “a declaration from the court to hold those verses unconstitutional, non-effective and non-functional” stated the report. His plea also sought directions from the SC to appoint a committee of religious experts to get an opinion on the subject matter of the petition.

On March 11, Waseem Rizvi, the former Chairman of the Shia Waqf Board, filed this petition in the Supreme Court seeking that “26 verses of the Quran be removed”. Rizvi in his petition, has stated that the Quran, the holy book of Muslims, has “some verses that are used to promote terrorism, violence, jihad”. In an interview with Aaj Tak, Rizvi claimed that these verses were added to the Quran later. Rizvi, who is known to be close to the right wing politicians, told the news channel that these “verses were added to the Quran, by the first three Caliphs, to aid the expansion of Islam by war.”

Rizvi, had reportedly alleged that few of the messages written in Holy Quran, are negative and promote violence and hatred. According to the plea, “Verse 9 Surah 5, is negative and promotes violence and hatred.” The B&B reported that verse read: “But once the Sacred Months have passed, kill the polytheists ˹who violated their treaties˺ wherever you find them, capture them, besiege them, and lie in wait for them on every way. But if they repent, perform prayers, and pay alms-tax, then set them free. Indeed, Allah is All-Forgiving, Most Merciful.” And Rizvi submitted that the message written in (a) to (e) of number 42(1) makes it clear that Allah is giving a message to every human being not to fight among themselves, not to quarrel with each other, not to kill anyone and not to disagree with followers of other religions, as preached in the 109.1 Holy Quran which mentions “LakumDeenakumWaliyaDeen” or “To you , your religion, to me mine” as the basic tenet of Islam based on the concept of tolerance and brotherhood among people coming from different religions.

According to news reports the plea stated that the matter involves the “entire Muslim community at large, which is subject to ridicule worldwide on account of the interpretation of the said verses, which have no basis or nexus with the objects which the holy book aims to achieve.”

Waseem Rizvi does not enjoy support within the Muslim community. He was in fact disowned and boycotted by both the Shia Clergy and laity in the past. In 2018, Maulana Kalbe Jawwad, a top Shia cleric had said that Rizvi, who was then the Chairman of UP Shia Waqf Board had been “excommunicated” for not heeding to a fatwa issued by Iraq’s top Shia cleric Ayatollah Ali Al-Sistani. News18 had quoted Maulana Jawwad as saying “Shias all around the world are facing embarrassment because of the statements made by Waseem Rizvi. People like Rizvi are working against Islam either under pressure or just to please their masters.” Rizvi had been put in the dock making ‘Ramjanmbhoomi’, a deeply provocative and communally polarising film in 2018.

The National Commission for Minorities (NCM) had sought an unconditional apology from the former Uttar Pradesh Shia Central Waqf Board chairman Waseem Rizvi for his derogatory comments against the Quran. The Commission has issued a notice to Rizvi telling him to withdraw his comments and tender an “unconditional apology” within 21 days. The NCM stated, “The comments given in the media by you about deletion of certain verses from the Quran are highly provocative, objectionable and malicious, prejudicial to maintenance of peace and harmony, with intent to outrage the religious feelings of a particular community and to insult the particular religion.” The NCM observed that Rizvi’s remarks appear to be a well-thought conspiracy to disturb the communal harmony of the country.