Declared illegal and marked for demolition: Security up at Sanjauli mosque ahead of Friday prayers

Samiti Convener Madan Thakur, who is among those sitting on hunger strike outside Sanjauli police station, said, “We will not go towards the mosque, but if the administration does not disconnect the electricity and water connections, we will block the Sanjauli chowk. It has almost been a month since the mosque was declared illegal, but the local administration is yet to seal the structure”.

Vikas Thapta, who is also among those sitting on indefinite strike, said, “We can’t stop anyone from practising his/her religious rights. If someone wants to perform prayers at a particular location then who are we to stop them? But why the namaz at a disputed site? This is not permissible even in Islam. But if the administration does not disconnect the connections of the disputed structure, we will hold a traffic jam at Sanjauli.”

Mohammed Latif, president Sanjauli Mosque Committee, said, “We can’t stop someone from performing namaz in the mosque. People are calling me asking whether they can come for the Friday prayers or not. I told them to decide on their own. The police have made certain security arrangements.”

Maulvi at the mosque, Maulana Shahzad Alam declined to make any comments.

Police, meanwhile, tightened the security to prevent any breach of peace. Shimla SP Sanjeev Gandhi said, “We will not allow any unlawful activity in the Sanjauli area. Certain members of an organisation are sitting on strike with demands that fall under the jurisdiction of the district administration, not the police. But no one will be allowed to disturb public harmony”.

He added that additional police forces had already been deployed in the area. “Any antisocial elements attempting to disrupt the peace will be dealt with strictly,” he said.

The Sanjauli mosque has been at the centre of a long-standing controversy. Nearly three years ago, the Municipal Corporation Court and later the District Court held that portions of the mosque were constructed without mandatory approvals, categorising them as illegal extensions. Since then, the Dev Bhoomi Sangharsh Samiti has been demanding the removal of the alleged encroached structure, cessation of religious activities, and disconnection of basic utilities.

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