A Connecticut condominium association has drawn queries from the Anti-Defamation League and a religious rights law office for allowing the display of items on doors but not doorposts.

The association’s agreement with its residents effectively bans the display of mezuzahs but not crucifixes and Christmas wreaths.

A March 13 letter to the California Condo Association in Stratford, Conn., from Nathan and Alyza Lewin, who have brought numerous successful anti-discrimination suits, says that by fining Barbara Cadranel for affixing a mezuzah to her doorpost, the association is in violation of the federal Fair Housing Act. The association had notified Cadranel that she would be fined $50 a day if she kept the mezuzah on her doorpost.

The Lewins say that if the association persists in fining Cadranel, they will institute legal proceedings.

In a separate letter, the ADL Connecti-cut office said that by allowing Christian objects to be displayed on doors, “the operative effect of a policy banning mezuzahs from a condominium complex may be to prevent Jews from living there,” and also notes that this may violate various civil rights laws.

The right of condominium owners to display mezuzahs has generally prevailed in similar cases in Connecticut and other states, and a number of states have enacted laws upholding that right. — jta