‘Dismiss plea on 26 verses in Koran’

The Prince of Arcot, Nawab Mohammed Abdul Ali, said that a recent petition by the former Chairman of the U.P. Shia Central Waqf Board Waseem Rizvi in the Supreme Court seeking removal of 26 verses from the Koran on the grounds that they “promote violence and terrorism” should be dismissed forthwith.

Stating that his attention had been drawn to several reports about the same by members of the community, Mr. Ali said the petition had been condemned by eminent people and learned scholars from both the Shia and Sunni communities. “Such an absurd, frivolous and vexatious petition deserves to be dismissed at the outset,” he said.

“There is not a single verse in the entire Holy Qur’an, which promotes violence or terrorism, when read in its proper context. The Holy Qur’an condemns unjustified violence and terrorism, while permitting self-defence. Only a distorted reading of verses taken out of the context can lead to such utterly wrong views, as expressed by Waseem Rizvi,” the Prince of Arcot said in a statement.

He said the court was not the proper forum or body to decide which verses can be allowed or removed from a religious book. “This would be a serious interference in the religious beliefs of communities concerned affecting their right to freedom of religion. If any court entertains such a petition, tomorrow it may be faced with similar petitions for the removal of verses from the religious books and scriptures of other religious communities,” his statement read.