British Court Upholds Ban On Hindu Funeral Pyres

Yesterday a British High Court rejected a challenge by a 70-year old Hindu man living in Britain to the country's ban on open-air funeral pyres used in traditional Hindu funerals, saying it must respect the political process. India Times and the London Telegraph report that the lawsuit, brought by Davender Ghai, founder of the Anglo-Asian Friendship Society, was a test case for the British Hindu community. The suit claimed that Britain's Cremation Act 1902 and the Cremation Regulations 2008 violate Articles 8 (respect for private and family live) and 9 (freedom of thought, conscience and religion) of the European Convention on Human Rights. The court, however, concluded that the ban was justified because others in the community would find the use of pyres to be offensive. The court gave Ghai permission to take the case to the Court of Appeal. (See prior related posting.)