Silence zones rules may shift Easter Mass indoors

Mumbai, April 10, 2017: Certain churches that fall under silence zones may shift Good Friday and Easter mass indoors instead of holding them in the open air school grounds. Silence zone guidelines apply in areas where schools are located.

Police spokesman Ashok Dudhe said it was untrue that permissions were not being granted for outdoor mass.

Maundy Thursday falls April 13, Good Friday April 14 and Easter is April 16.

Holy Name Cathedral in Colaba, where the archbishop presides over holy mass, has been asked to avoid using sound systems. Fr Nigel Barrett, spokesman for the archdiocese, said, “Most churches utilise open grounds attached to their schools for Good Friday and Easter mass. The area around a school is demarcated as a silence zone but schools are closed at this time of year. Also our services wind up before 10.00pm.”

Interestingly several churches whose names were circulated by an NGO denied not receiving permission. One church in Mulund had been summoned to the police station to receive the go-ahead, another in Sewri routinely holds mass indoors while a third in Orlem, Malad, said it was merely a rumour. Amboli police was yet to receive an application from the local church, The Times of India reported.

In August 2016 the Bombay high court had passed a detailed judgment which mentioned that loudspeakers cannot be used in a silence zone. The state government has issued a notification to police across Maharashtra not to grant permission for use of loudspeakers in silence zones.

– times of india