Security personnel outside Gyanvapi Masjid, in Varanasi district, Friday, April 6, 2022. (PTI)Gyanvapi Mosque Case Highlights: The Supreme Court Tuesday asked the Varanasi District Magistrate to protect the area where the ‘shivling’ was found without impeding the right of Muslims to enter and worship. The court will hear the matter again on May 19.
Meanwhile, the Varanasi court Tuesday removed advocate-Commissioner Ajay Kumar Mishra from his post. Mishra was responsible for the filming and carrying out the survey of the Kashi Vishwanath temple-Gyanvapi mosque complex. The court also granted two days extension for the submission of the committee’s survey report. Earlier on Monday, the Varanasi court directed the district administration to seal the spot in the mosque complex where a Shivling was claimed to have been found during the videography survey.
The Supreme Court was hearing a plea by the Committee of Management of Anjuman Intezamia Masjid, Varanasi, challenging the videography survey ordered by a local court of the Maa Shringar Gauri Sthal in the complex. The Muslim body contends that it is contrary to provisions of the Places of Worship (Special Provisions) Act 1991. The Hindu Sena President has filed an intervention in the apex court, seeking a dismissal of the appeal, the Bar and Bench reported.
In this file photo, view of Kashi Vishwanath Temple Dham and Gyanvapi Masjid complex, in Varanasi. (PTI)
When the Supreme Court ruled in favour of the Ram temple in Ayodhya on November 9, 2019, Prime Minister Narendra Modi called it a “day to forget any bitterness one may have”. The same day, responding to a question on whether the RSS would now take up the issue of the Gyanvapi mosque in Varanasi and the Shahi Idgah in Mathura, its chief Mohan Bhagwat said: “Because of a historical backdrop, the Sangh got associated with this movement (Ayodhya) as an organisation. It is an exception. Now we will again be associated with human development and this movement will not remain of concern to us.”
Both the BJP and the RSS leadership gave strict directives to their units across the country to avoid any triumphalism over the verdict.
That needle is now moving. Read here.
What was being searched for (again) since the violent slogan “Ayodhya to jhanki hai, Kashi Mathura baki hai” (Ayodhya is a trailer, Varanasi and Mathura are yet to come) was exclaimed, has been found. No, not the Shivling that the petitioners of the lawsuit filed in a Varanasi civil court allege to have found in the wuzu khana of the Gyanvapi Mosque. What has been found, or rather, created, is a rupture in the wall that separates the modern constitutional democracy of India from its ancient and medieval polity — the polity characterised by expansionist warfare and legitimised by the divine instead of the values of modernity.
After the blot on our modern history called the demolition of Babri Masjid, what we see unfolding in Varanasi is another legitimisation of an apparent conflict in architectural history which, if we have not already learnt, is an exercise in violent majoritarianism. Read here.
The Supreme Court did not pronounce a stay on proceedings before the Varanasi court with regard to the Gyanvaapi survey.
The Supreme Court Tuesday issued an order to protect the area where the shivling was found without affecting the right of Muslims to enter and worship.
The Supreme Court said it will hear the matter again on Thursday. "We have to balance it out. SC suggests it will say DM Varanasi has to ensure that area where Shivling is protected without affecting the right of Muslims to enter and worship," said the court.
"We will protect part of this order where Shivling was found. But the rest of the order in points 1,2 and 3 is stayed," said the court.
The Supreme Court said it needs clarity on whether the order is only for sealing the area where shivling was found or granting all three prayers, namely sealing of spot, restricting the number of Muslims offering namaz, and preventing the use of wazu khana.
The Solicitor General, appearing for the state of Uttar Pradesh, has asked for time till Wednesday to respond.
"Let me look at ramifications so that there is no unintended consequence," he said, reported Bar and Bench.
Back to the hearing in the Supreme Court.
After suggesting that it can ask the trial court to first hear the Masjid Committee's application, the Supreme Court said that it will issue a notice to the effect. It asked Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for the state of Uttar Pradesh, to assist the court.
"We will issue notice to plaintiffs. Till the next date of listing, we will issue a direction that DM will ensure that the shivling area will be protected but it will not impede access of Muslims to the mosque for prayers. it is an ex parte order," the court said, reported Bar and Bench.
Meanwhile, Advocate-Commissioner Ajay Kumar Mishra, who led the filming and survey of the Kashi Vishwanath temple-Gyanvapi mosque complex, has been removed from his post appointed by the Varanasi court.
In response to Adv Huzefa Ahmadi's argument, the Supreme Court suggests that it can ask the trial court to first hear the Masjid Committee's application questioning the maintainability of the suit.
Speaking on the events of last week, senior Adv Huzefa Ahmadi, appearing for the Masjid Committee, said: 'On Saturday and Sunday, Commissioner went to execute the survey, and Commissioner was fully aware that matter is pending before the Supreme Court and is listed before this bench. Varanasi Court on Monday ordered to seal a spot in the complex after being told by the Commissioner that a Shivling was found inside the Gyanvapi Mosque premises.'
Advocate Ahmadi read out the Varanasi court order that prohibited Muslims from performing ablution in the mosque complex, adding that under the garb of commission proceeding, the status quo is sought to be altered and the area is being earmarked and the area is being sealed.
Another point made senior Adv Huzefa Ahmadi, who leads the Counsel for Masjid Committee's case, was on the selection of an advocate-commissioner.
"We were apprehensive about the appointment of an advocate-commissioner. We asked, why are you cherry-picking a person for the commissioner to do the survey?" he told the court.
Speaking on the shivling, senior Adv Huzefa Ahmadi, who leads the Counsel for Masjid Committee's case, says:
Senior Adv Huzefa Ahmadi, who leads the Counsel for Masjid Committee's case, said that the prayer in the apex court is for declaration and injunction from any obstruction to worship.
He added that the prayers in suit categorically speak about changing the religious character of the structure which presently is a mosque, reports Express' Ananthakrishnan G.
A Supreme Court bench of Justices D Y Chandrachud and P S Narasimha has taken up the appeal against the Gyanvaapi survey for hearing, report Express' Ananthakrishnan G.
The appeal has been filed by the Committee of Management of Anjuman Intezamia Masjid, Varanasi, against the survey ordered by the local court.
The judgment by the Varanasi court on the plea asking for a two-day extension to the court-appointed commission's survey is expected soon.
Meanwhile, the Supreme Court hearing is scheduled to begin in 5 minutes. The delay was because Senior Adv Huzefa Ahmadi, who leads the Counsel for Masjid Committee's case, was in a different courtroom. Though the advocate appeared shortly, Justice Chandrachud called for a 5-minute comfort break. "We will take a 5 minutes comfort break and be here. We don't want to be mentally stressed," he said, as per a Bar and Bench report.
The hearing of a plea challenging the videography survey of the Maa Shringar Gauri Sthal in the Kashi Vishwanath temple-Gyanvapi mosque complex is set to begin shortly.
A quick recap for our readers who are joining in now. There are two cases related to the Kashi Vishwanath temple-Gyanvapi mosque complex that we are tracking today.
The Varanasi court-appointed Commission that carried out the survey of the Kashi Vishwanath temple-Gyanvapi mosque complex has submitted an application in the court seeking two additional days to submit its report.
The court is expected to pronounce its judgment at 4 pm today, according to the legal affairs website Live Law.
As the average Indian reels under fears of Covid and battles the bitter inflation, many noticed with worry and consternation that a court in Varanasi at the instance of a group of women petitioners (seeking permission to pray in the premises of the Gyanvapi Mosque) directed a survey to be conducted of the mosque, by a lawyer commissioner, one Ajay Kumar Mishra. The said directions to conduct the survey were challenged by the Anjuman Intezamia Masjid Committee, which manages the Gyanvapi mosque before the Allahabad High Court. Unfortunately, the Court upheld the order leading to the filing of a Special Leave Petition.
On Friday, mentioning this matter, the Senior Advocate appearing for the Anjuman Committee requested the Supreme Court that it stay the survey. However, the apex court declined and instead listed the matter for the coming Tuesday.
Read lawyer Nandita Rao's analysis of the Ayodhya verdict and the Gyanvapi case.
Maharashtra Home Minister Dilip Walse Patil Tuesday said members of the Hindu and Muslim communities should ensure there is no attempt made to divide people in the state on religious lines, and the atmosphere must be kept peaceful.
Walse Patil made the comment while responding to a question by reporters in connection with the survey of the Gyanvapi mosque in Uttar Pradesh's Varanasi city and reports of tense situation there.
“The matter is pending before the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court will take a decision in that regard. The brothers and sisters from Hindu and Muslim communities should take care that there is no (bid to) divide people on religious lines (in Maharashtra),” the minister told reporters. The atmosphere in the state must be kept peaceful, he added. “The Maharashtra police are doing their job. They are keeping a tab on the situation,” the minister said. (PTI)
"Around 50 per cent of the report is ready. This is because we did not get time (to compile report)," Assistant Advocate Commissioner, Ajay Pratap Singh said.
Singh said during the survey underground rooms were surveyed and locks of rooms for which keys were not available broken. "Open as well as closed 'taikhanas' (underground rooms) were surveyed, and locks of 'taikhanas', whose keys were not found, were broken by the district administration. They were videographed and photographed," he said.
When asked about the 'wazookhana' in the mosque complex, he said, "I cannot comment on it. But, definitely there was something due to which the Hindu side made a claim on it and the court gave its orders after taking cognizance of it."
An application has been filed in the court seeking two additional days to submit the report. (PTI)
DGC (civil) Mahendra Prasad Pandey, who moved the application in the Varanasi court, said that the appeal to shift the water pipelines has been made so that those going to offer prayers inside the mosque can take water for wazookhana.
He added that the fishes can die in the sealed area and hence the appeal has been made. Read more
Fahad Zuberi writes in an Opinion column: "After the blot on our modern history called the demolition of Babri Masjid, what we see unfolding in Varanasi is another legitimisation of an apparent conflict in architectural history which, if we have not already learnt, is an exercise in violent majoritarianism. The courts that entertained the matter and then went ahead in much haste to launch an investigation into what was the building’s “true nature” are to be blamed. Had wiser discretion prevailed, the petition would not have been entertained in the first place. The question should not have been asked." Read more
Protests broke out at Malegaon on Monday evening over the video survey that was held at the Kashi Vishwanath temple-Gyanvapi mosque complex, with slogans being raised against Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The protests were carried out by members of the Social Democratic Party of India (SDPI).
The police issued notices to the protesters, saying necessary permission had not been sought to carry out the protest. The incident took place late Monday evening when SDPI members raised slogans for “saving Gyanvapi mosque” and in favour of the Constitution. Read more
The Varanasi court-appointed Commission that carried out the survey of the Kashi Vishwanath temple-Gyanvapi mosque complex has submitted an application in the court seeking two additional days to submit its report.
The court had sought the survey report on Tuesday from Advocate Commissioner Ajay Kumar Mishra and two other commissioners it had appointed during a hearing on Thursday.
The Gyanvapi Mosque is believed to have been built in 1669 during the reign of the Mughal emperor Aurangzeb, who ordered the demolition of the existing Vishweshwar temple and its replacement by a mosque. This is also mentioned in the 1937 book History of Benares: From the Earliest Times Down to 1937 by AS Altekar, who was head of the Department of Ancient Indian History and Culture at Banaras Hindu University.
For more than 100 years after the mosque was built, there was no temple at the site. The present Kashi Vishwanath Temple was built in the 18th century by Rani Ahilyabai Holkar of Indore, immediately to the south of the mosque. Over the decades it emerged as one of the most prominent and revered centres of the Hindu religion.
Many Hindus have long believed that the original lingam of the erstwhile Vishweshwar temple was hidden by the priests inside the Gyanvapi well during Aurangzeb’s raid — which has fired the desire to conduct puja and rituals at the sacred place where the mosque now stands.
From time to time, petitioners have laid claim to the mosque, saying it remains the original sacred place of Hindu worship. Read more
The SC bench of Justices D Y Chandrachud and P S Narasimha has assembled in the court and is hearing matters as per the cause list. The Gyanvapi mosque case is listed as item 40, Live Law reported.
The commission tasked with the videography survey of the Gyanvapi Masjid complex here will on Tuesday seek additional time from a local court to submit its report as it is yet to be prepared, an official said.
The court had earlier asked the commission to submit the report by Tuesday.
Assistant Advocate Commissioner, Ajay Pratap Singh, said, "As per the orders of the court, the videography survey of the Gyanvapi Masjid complex took place from May 14 to May 16 from 8 am to 12 noon, and its report was to be submitted to the court." "However, we are not submitting the report in the court today (Tuesday) since it is not prepared. We will seek additional time from the court, and whatever time the court gives, we will submit the report then," Singh said. (PTI)
Hindu Sena President Vishnu Gupta's intervention in the plea challenging the survey of the Gyanvapi mosque complex was brought up before a Supreme Court bench of Justices Chandrachud and Narasimha.
The counsel requested that the plea be heard along with the Masjid committee's appeal. "You be here in the court," Justice Chandrachud told the lawyer, Live Law reported.
Hours after one of the parties in the Gyanvapi mosque complex case claimed a 'Shivling' has been found on its premises, the Vishva Hindu Parisad (VHP) on Monday termed it a proof of the existence of a temple there and hoped it will lead to an "obvious outcome".
VHP national spokesperson Vinod Bansal said the faces of those who were trying to "hide the truth" have been "painted black" with the "finding" of the 'Shivling' on the mosque premises.
In a video message, the VHP international working president Alok Kumar said the "existence of a 'Shivling'" on the Gyanvapi mosque premises was "self-evident" that a temple was there and hoped that "everyone" in the country will "accept and honour this proof." "It's very good news. The Shivling has been found in the presence of both parties and their lawyers. The finding of Shivling is self-evident. It has been proved that the place, where the Shivling has been found, is a temple today and was a temple in 1947 also," the VHP leader said. (PTI)
AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi on Monday asserted he will not let the Gyanvapi mosque in Varanasi meet the fate of the Babri masjid that was demolished in December 1992.
The Lok Sabha MP from Hyderabad said he will continue to speak on the Gyanvapi masjid issue, which he termed as an attempt to weaken the Constitution, as he was not scared of either Prime Minister Narendra Modi or Uttar Pradesh CM Yogi Adityanath.
"I am pained (by the survey) because the Indian Constitution is being weakened, the judgement of the Supreme Court is being ignored, and those who question me should read section 4(2) of the 1991 law (the Places of Worship Act)," he said. (PTI)
The All-India Muslim Personal Law Board has termed as "unfair" and an "attempt to create communal disharmony" the sealing of a pond in the Gyanvapi Masjid complex after it was claimed that a Shivling was found there during a survey.
In a statement issued late Monday night, AIMPLB general secretary Khalid Saifullah Rahmani said, "The Gyanvapi mosque is a mosque and will remain a mosque. The attempt to term it a temple is nothing more than a conspiracy to create communal disharmony. It is a matter of constitutional rights and is against the law." "In 1937, in the case of Deen Mohammad Vs State Secretary, the court had decided on the basis of oral testimony and documents that this entire compound (Gyanvapi mosque complex) belongs to the Muslim Waqf and Muslims have the right to offer namaz in it," he said.
The court had also decided that how much area is of the mosque and how much is of the temple. At the same time, the wazookhana was accepted as the property of the mosque, Rahmani added. (PTI)
A Varanasi court Monday directed the district administration to seal the spot in the mosque complex where a Shivling was claimed to have been found during a court-mandated videography survey that just concluded.
Civil Judge (Senior Division) Ravi Kumar Diwakar, hearing a plea by five women seeking permission for daily prayers at Maa Shringar Gauri Sthal on the outer wall of the mosque complex, said, “District Magistrate, Varanasi, is directed to immediately seal the place where the Shivling has been found. No person should be allowed to enter the place which will be sealed.”
Advocate Hari Shankar Jain, representing the five women petitioners, filed an application Monday, saying a “Shivling is found in masjid complex at the place where wuzu khana is there”.
A commission tasked by the court to conduct a survey will submit its report and findings on Tuesday. It concluded its survey Monday and officials said the findings were “confidential”. Read more
Nandita Rao writes in an Opinion column: "On Friday, mentioning the Gyanvapi mosque matter, the Senior Advocate appearing for the Anjuman Committee requested the Supreme Court that it stay the survey. However, the apex court declined and instead listed the matter for the coming Tuesday. In surprising haste, the Varanasi court, on May 16 has gone ahead on the basis of submissions made by the Court Commissioner that a Shiva Linga was found in a portion of the mosque, to seal that portion. One would have expected — as is normally the case in civil suits — that the trial court stays its hand and does not precipitate the matter further while the Supreme Court is seized of it. The haste of the trial court was accompanied by statements made by the judge concerning his own safety, which in itself raises concerns around judicial independence." Read more
A Supreme Court bench headed by Chief Justice N V Ramana on Friday declined to pass any order on an appeal seeking urgent stay on the inspection of the Kashi Vishwanath temple-Gyanvapi mosque complex, saying it will decide on listing it for hearing after going through the files.
“I have no idea about this case. Let me look at the papers. We will list it…,” the CJI said Friday as Senior Advocate Huzefa Ahmadi, appearing for the Anjuman Intezamia Masjid Committee, brought up the matter during the mentioning hours – when urgent matters are brought to the attention of the court.
Ahmadi then sought a status quo order to which the CJI said, “Without knowing anything, how can I?…Let me see the file…”
The bench later directed that the matter be listed before a bench presided by Justice D Y Chandrachud, who is scheduled to hear the case today. Read more
While all eyes are on the Kashi Vishwanath Temple-Gyanvapi Mosque complex in Varanasi, a similar petition seeking videography of the Shahi Idgah Masjid adjacent to Krishnajanmabhoomi was recently moved in a local Mathura court.
The application seeks an advocate commissioner for assessment of the site “on the lines of (the) Gyanvapi mosque”, to determine “existence of Hindu artefacts and ancient religious inscriptions on the mosque premises”.
The application was filed in the court of Civil Judge (Senior Division), Mathura, a day after the Allahabad High Court directed it to dispose of all cases related to the Shri Krishna Janmabhoomi-Shahi Idgah Masjid dispute within four months. Read more
The Hindu Sena President has filed an intervention in the apex court, seeking a dismissal of the appeal filed by the Committee of Management of Anjuman Intezamia Masjid, Varanasi, challenging the videography survey, the Bar and Bench reported.
The Hindu Sena’s plea states that the Gyanvapi mosque is exempt from the said Places of Worship Act as the Kashi Vishwanath Temple and Shringar Ma Gauri temple within the mosque complex fall under the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains Act, 1958.
It is "An Act to prohibit conversion of any place of worship and to provide for the maintenance of the religious character of any place of worship as it existed on the 15th day of August, 1947, and for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto.”
Section 3 of the Act bars the conversion, in full or part, of a place of worship of any religious denomination into a place of worship of a different religious denomination — or even a different segment of the same religious denomination.
At least two petitions challenging the Act — filed by Lucknow-based Vishwa Bhadra Pujari Purohit Mahasangh and some followers of Sanatan Vedic Religion, and BJP leader Ashwini Upadhyay — are pending before the Supreme Court. The law has been challenged on the ground that it bars judicial review, which is a basic feature of the Constitution, imposes an “arbitrary irrational retrospective cutoff date”, and abridges the right to religion of Hindus, Jains, Buddhists and Sikhs.
The court issued notice on Upadhyay’s petition in March 2021, but the Centre is yet to file its reply. Read more
An appeal by the Committee of Management of Anjuman Intezamia Masjid, Varanasi, which challenges the April 21, 2022 Allahabad High Court ruling dismissing its petition against the order of a Varanasi court ordering the videographic survey of the disputed side, is listed Tuesday before a Supreme Court bench of Justices D Y Chandrachud and P S Narasimha.
The Muslim body contends that it is contrary to provisions of the Places of Worship (Special Provisions) Act 1991.
The Act states that the nature of all places of worship, except Ram Janmabhoomi–Babri Masjid in Ayodhya, shall be maintained as it was on August 15, 1947 and that no suit shall lie in any court with respect to the conversion of the religious character of a place of worship, as existing on that date.
The local court, said the Mosque Committee, should have first heard its application seeking rejection of demand for being barred by the Act, before going ahead. Read more