The Madras High Court has held that a residential house cannot be converted into a prayer hall without proper permission from the authorities under applicable planning laws.
Justice N. Anand Venkatesh made this observation while dismissing a plea filed by Pastor L. Joseph Wilson of the Word of God Ministries Trust, who had challenged a notice issued by the Tahsildar, Kodavasal Taluk, directing him to shut down a prayer house within 10 days.
The petitioner claimed that he had purchased the property in January 2023 and had been holding regular prayer meetings with relatives and neighbours. He said an application for building plan approval for constructing a church was rejected by the district collector, following which the Tahsildar issued the impugned notice.
The government, in its response, submitted that the petitioner was using the premises for large-scale public worship without requisite permissions and that the prayer meetings were causing disturbance to neighbours.
Citing previous orders of the High Court, particularly W.P.(MD) No.5226 of 2016, the judge reiterated that religious gatherings of this scale transform the character of the property into a public place of worship, requiring compliance with the Tamil Nadu Panchayats Building Rules and planning permissions.
“It is clear from the above judgment that conducting prayer meetings in a prayer hall requires obtaining permission from the authority concerned under the relevant rules. Hence, the petitioner cannot, as a matter of right, have a prayer hall to conduct prayer meetings without obtaining any permission,” the court observed.
The court also declined to accept an affidavit filed by the petitioner in which he undertook to conduct house prayers “peacefully without using loudspeaker and microphone,” calling it inadequate.
“This undertaking given by the petitioner falls short of the undertaking that was expected by this Court. Mere non-usage of loudspeaker and microphone will not solve the issue. The crux of the issue is that the petitioner cannot convert a house into a prayer hall to conduct prayer meetings,” the court said.
Relying on judgments including Church of God (Full Gospel) in India v. K.K.R. Majestic Colony Welfare Association (2000) and Acharya Jagadishwarananda Avadhuta (2004), the bench noted that religious rights, though protected under Articles 25 and 26 of the Constitution, are subject to reasonable restrictions and public order.
“In any case, if there is such practice, it should not adversely affect the rights of others including that of being not disturbed in their activities,” the Supreme Court had held in Church of God, which the High Court quoted in support of its conclusion.
Accordingly, the court directed that the seal on the petitioner’s premises may be removed, but strictly on the condition that it is not used as a prayer hall unless due permission is obtained from the District Collector. If the property is again used for public worship without such approval, the authorities are at liberty to take appropriate action.
The writ petition was disposed of with these directions.
(With inputs from Live Law)
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