Can the religious character of a pilgrimage town justify restrictions on what restaurants sell near the place of worship? The Gujarat High Court is examining that question in a petition filed by six Somnath restaurant owners challenging the blanket ban imposed by the state on the sale of non-vegetarian food in the 500-meter periphery of the Somnath temple.

On Wednesday, the State defended the ban, citing judicial rulings concerning pilgrimage centres including Rishikesh, Haridwar, Amritsar and Mathura-Vrindavan, and argued that a town visited by 1.2 crore devotees in less than a year cannot be treated as an ordinary commercial centre.

Government Pleader G H Virk submitted before the single-judge bench of Justice Nisha M Thakore that the restrictions were intended to preserve the character of the pilgrimage routes and ensure that devotees could move along them without inconvenience.

Virk stated that the state affidavit submits that the curb does not prevent the restaurants from operating or requiring them…