The Allahabad High Court has disposed of a petition by a mosque committee in Saharanpur, recording that police and the district administration will not interfere with the five-time azan once the petitioners file an affidavit undertaking compliance with the Noise Pollution Rules, 2000 and an earlier Division Bench judgment on loudspeakers.
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Prayagraj: The Allahabad High Court has disposed of a writ petition by members of the committee of a mosque in Village Pathed, Saharanpur, who sought a direction to the authorities to permit the azan five times a day, with the use of loudspeakers, recording that the police and district administration would not interfere with the azan once the petitioners file an affidavit undertaking compliance with the Noise Pollution (Regulation and Control) Rules, 2000 [Shanawaz Khan and 5 Others v. State of U.P. and 4 Others].
A Division Bench of Justice Ajit Kumar and Justice Garima Prashad noted the State’s position that the azan itself was not being prevented and that only the manner of use of loudspeakers was being regulated.
The petitioners’ case and the State’s response
The petitioners sought a mandamus to permit the azan five times daily at the mosque and the use of loudspeakers for it. They contended that the authorities were preventing the use of loudspeakers despite earlier judicial pronouncements. The police and district administration responded that they were not stopping the azan, and that the restrictions on sound levels and the bar on loudspeaker use between 10 PM and 6 AM under the Noise Pollution Rules applied to all loudspeaker use.
The Afzal Ansari ruling
The Bench referred to the Division Bench judgment of the High Court in the Afzal Ansari case of 2020, which held:
“Azan may be an essential and integral part of Islam but recitation of Azan through loud-speakers or other sound amplifying devices cannot be said to be an integral part”
The Court clarified, as reported, that a muezzin could recite the azan from the minarets of a mosque in the human voice without using any amplifying device.
The directions
The Court directed the petitioners to file an application with a notarised affidavit undertaking strict compliance with the Noise Pollution Rules, 2000 and the Afzal Ansari judgment. On such filing, it recorded that:
“the police and district administration would not be interfering in the petitioners’ right to perform Azan five times in the Ayesha Mosque.”
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The authorities were left free to monitor compliance and to take appropriate action in accordance with law if the undertaking is violated. No next date was indicated, and the petition stands disposed of.
Why The Azan Order Matters
The order separates the right to perform the azan, which the State said it was not disputing, from the use of amplifying devices, which remains subject to the Noise Pollution Rules and the High Court’s 2020 ruling. It makes the petitioners’ undertaking the condition on which the police and district administration are to refrain from interference.
Case Details: Shanawaz Khan and 5 Others v. State of U.P. and 4 Others | Writ-C No. 28047 of 2026 | 2026 LiveLaw (AB) 801 | Before: Justice Ajit Kumar and Justice Garima Prashad | Order dated: October 1, 2026
Appearances: Advocates Pranesh Kumar Mishra and Amit Kumar Tiwari appeared for the petitioners; State Law Officer Sandeep Singh and the Chief Standing Counsel appeared for the State.