New Delhi, March 31 -- The Supreme Court on Tuesday (April 1) will hear a plea challenging the validity of a provision of the Places of Worship (Special Provisions) Act, 1991, which preserves the character of religious places as they existed on August 15, 1947.

A bench of Chief Justice of India Sanjiv Khanna and Justice Sanjay Kumar will hear the plea.

The petition has sought the top court's direction allowing courts to pass appropriate orders to ascertain the original religious character of a place of worship.

The petitioner Nitin Upadhyay, a law student, has also challenged section 4(2) of the Act that barred proceedings to change the religious character, besides prohibiting filing of fresh cases for the same.

"The Centre has transg...