Supreme Court urged to intervene in mosques-dargah survey orders by lower courts

The claims on mosques make a mockery of the Places of Worship Act, 1991, says All India Muslim Personal Law Board

To bring a halt to a surfeit of petitions pleading for surveys of medieval places of worship, the All India Muslim Personal Law Board has appealed to the Supreme Court to take suo motu notice and bar the District and Sessions courts from entertaining such petitions. The appeal comes in the wake of Ajmer’s West Civil Court’s acceptance to hear a petition claiming that the historic Ajmer dargah was originally a Sankat Mochan Mahadev temple. “The Chief Justice of India should take suo motu action and direct the lower courts to refrain from opening doors to further disputes,” the Board’s spokesperson S.Q.R. Ilyas said in a statement.

Expressing “deep concern and anguish” over the recent surge in claims on mosques and dargahs, Mr. Ilyas said “Such claims make a mockery of the law.”

“Following the unresolved issue of Sambhal’s Jama Masjid, a new claim has emerged, asserting that the world-renowned Ajmer dargah was actually a temple. Unfortunately, the West Civil Court in Ajmer has accepted this petition for hearing and issued notices to the parties involved. The complainant has named the Dargah Committee, the Union Ministry of Minority Affairs, and the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) as respondents.” The dargah, however, does not come under the purview of the ASI.

“The claims on the Ajmer dargah as well as on the Sambhal Jama Masjid make a blatant mockery of the law and the Constitution, especially in the light of the existence of the Places of Worship Act, 1991. This law clearly specifies that the status of any place of worship as of August 15, 1947, shall remain unchanged and cannot be challenged. The intent of the law-makers was to prevent further targeting of mosques or other religious places following the Babri Masjid case,” Mr. Ilyas stated.

“Digging up the past does not help anyone,” he added, appealing for calm and peace from all involved.

The Ajmer dargah attracts visiting dignitaries from several Muslim countries. Also, Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi as well as the Minister for Minority Affairs are known to send a chador (cloth) annually to the dargah.

Calling the claims on the Muslim places of worship in Varanasi, Mathura, Lucknow, Dhar, and now Sambhal and Ajmer, “deeply unfortunate and shameful”, the Board spokesperson stated, “Despite the law, the court has accepted Vishnu Gupta’s petition for hearing and issued notices to the parties. The petitioner alleges that the land of the dargah was originally a temple dedicated to Lord Shiva, where worship and rituals like jal abhishek (holy bath) were performed. Is it not against the letter and spirit of the Act of 1991?”

Back in 1991, Parliament exempted the Babri Masjid-Ramjanmabhoomi from the purview of the Places of Worship Act as the site was already being contested in the Supreme Court. Mr. Ilyas said, “When the lower court accepted the claim on the Gyanvapi Mosque, the Muslim side approached the Supreme Court, arguing that such a claim should not be entertained given the Places of Worship Act. The court, however, softened its stance and allowed the survey, stating that the claim did not violate the 1991 law. This has led to subsequent claims on Shahi Eidgah in Mathura, Teele Wali Masjid in Lucknow, and, now, the Jama Masjid in Sambhal and Ajmer Dargah.”

Besides requesting for a top-level judicial intervention, the Board has warned that any failure to stop admitting new petitions against age-old places of worship, “could lead to an explosive situation across the country, for which the Supreme Court and the Central government would be held accountable.”

Published - November 28, 2024 11:36 pm IST