Protesters burn BJP chief Rajnath Singh’s effigy in Allahabad. The party had welcomed the ruling denying Muslims minority status in Uttar Pradesh. (AP)

Allahabad, April 6: A division bench of Allahabad High Court today stayed the ruling of a single judge denying minority status to Muslims in Uttar Pradesh.

The bench of Justices S.R. Alam and Krishna Murari gave the stay order after a preliminary hearing of a review petition filed by the state government challenging yesterday’s verdict of Justice S.N. Srivastava.

The state government, which moved an urgent application for hearing, argued it was not necessary for the single judge to adjudicate on the minority status of Muslims as the matter was neither before him nor was any relief sought.

The bench has fixed May 14 as the next date of hearing.

The stay came on the eve of the first phase of the elections to the Uttar Pradesh Assembly. Yesterday’s order had triggered an outcry among almost all political parties, except the BJP which welcomed it.

Highlighting the urgency of the matter, advocate-general S.M.A. Kazmi submitted that “hundreds of welfare schemes run by the state would be affected by yesterday’s judgment and benefits accruing to Muslims under them would come to an end”.

He said: “The order was passed without reasons. Besides, the question of minority status for Muslims was neither before the single judge nor was any relief sought on the basis thereof. It was, therefore, not necessary to adjudicate on this issue”.

Kazmi also submitted that the division bench had already stayed proceedings before the single-judge bench on a similar petition after a special leave petition was filed and had raised questions as to what should be the criterion for minority status for Muslims.

“As such,” Kazmi submitted, “the single-judge bench should not have passed the judgment on one petition while proceedings were stayed on the other on the ground that the issue of minority did not arise out of that petition.”

The division bench said the special leave applications of the state with regard to both the petitions would be taken up for hearing simultaneously.

“Since another division bench had stayed a similar case dealing with the same questions of law, it was against judicial propriety for a single-judge bench to hear the matter at all,” the bench said.

Zafaryab Jilani, a Muslim personal law board member, welcomed the stay order and appreciated the state government for filing a quick review petition.

But BSP leader Mayavati said: “Mulayam Singh was sleeping. A helpless Muslim petitioner had to go to the high court for a minor problem. This could have been sorted out by the chief minister.”