Calcutta HC allows live streaming of hearing of case seeking

In a first in its history, the Calcutta High Court on Wednesday allowed live streaming of proceedings in a case seeking entry of children born to Parsi women and non-Parsi men into a fire temple, a Zoroastrian place of worship, in the city.

Seeking permission for live streaming of the proceedings, Parsi Zoroastrian Association of Calcutta (PZAC) lawyer Phiroze Edulji submitted before the court that the hearings in the case are of utmost importance to all Parsis in the country and that they would be benefitted from the outcome of the matter.

Allowing PZAC's prayer, a division bench comprising justices Sanjib Banerjee and Kaushik Chanda directed that two special cameras be placed in the court room to telecast the proceedings on YouTube.

The court directed that the cost of the telecast would be borne by PZAC.

The Parsi body is one of the parties in the petition by Prochy N Mehta and Sanaya Mehta Vyas who are seeking access to a fire temple at Metcalfe Street in the central part of the city. PZAC is opposed to it.

The petition was moved by Mehta and Vyas before the high court against Noshir N Tankariwala, Y J Dastoor and J S Billimoria, trustees of The Late Ervad Dhunjeebhoy Byramjee Mehta's Zoroastrian Anjuman Atash Adaran Trust, who opposed their access to the fire temple.

Their access to the fire temple was allegedly denied since they were born to a Parsi mother and a non-Parsi father, even if they were initiated to the religion through a ceremony.

The date for the final hearing in the matter, live streaming of which was allowed by the court, has not yet been fixed.

A single bench of the high court had earlier disallowed the prayer for live streaming, following which an appeal on the issue was moved before the division bench.

The original petition seeking access to the fire temple will be heard before the single bench.