The Anglo-Asian Friendship Society said that a ban on the use of funeral pyres, dating back to 1930, unfairly penalised followers of both religions. It has approached a local authority to seek land for open-air cremations and is threatening to take the case to the European Court of Human Rights.

The charity, which has 2,000 members, said that its proposal for pyres located at sites across the country, beginning with one near Newcastle upon Tyne, would meet all planning and environmental requirements.

Davendar Ghai, the society’s president, said that open-air cremations were considered essential to the process of reincarnation. “Reincarnation is a foundation of the faith and the older generation fully believe that, without these essential last rites, the soul languishes in restless torment,” he said.

Mr Ghai said that many Hindus and Sikhs were offended by having no alternative but to use the gas-powered furnaces of a conventional crematorium.

In a traditional Hindu funeral, the appropriate disposal of the ashes is vital. They are cooled and carefully collected so that there is no possibility of intermingling with other ashes.

Mr Ghai said that many relatives chose the expensive option of taking the remains to India to avoid risking the “catastrophic consequences for the departed soul” of a failure to observe all the rituals.

Lawyers working for the society, which is based in Gosforth, near Newcastle, have prepared a case to be heard under the 1988 Human Rights Act.

The documentation, claiming that the Government’s refusal to allow funeral pyres makes it impossible for Hindus and Sikhs to practise their religion, was presented to Newcastle City Council this week.

Andrew Bogan, the society’s legal adviser, said that it was seeking an open-air cremation site between 10 and 12 miles outside the city centre and a long way from people’s homes. “This is a longstanding requirement that is as old as the religion itself and it has been neglected far too long,” he said.

A Newcastle council spokesman said: “We look forward to reading the Anglo-Asian Friendship Society’s proposals.”

DEARLY DEPARTED

www.timesonline.co.uk/faith

Comment by Ruth Gledhill on her weblog

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