Mathura dispute: Mosque panel likely to file plea against survey order today

Agra: The management committee of the Shahi Eidgah mosque adjoining the Sri Krishna Janmabhoomi temple in Mathura is expected to file an objection against a court order for a survey of the mosque when the court resumes work after the winter vacation on Monday.

A civil judge on December 8 had ordered the survey by court ameen, or staff designated by the court.

“We will move applications before the additional civil judge senior division (court no. 3) at Mathura on Monday,” Tanveer Ahmed, lawyer and secretary of the management committee of the mosque, said on Sunday. “These applications will include objections against the order dated December 8, 2022, when the court ordered a survey of the Shahi Eidgah Mosque by court ameen and now January 20, 2023, has been fixed as the next date in the case,”

The petitioners in the case are Vishnu Gupta, a Delhi-based president of Hindu Sena, a right-wing organisation, , and Surjit Singh Yadav, vice-president of the outfit and a resident of Gurugram in Haryana. Both have filed the case on behalf of Bhagwan Bal Krishna Virajman Thakur Keshav Dev Ji Maharaj, considered the personification of the deity Lord Krishna.

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The petitioners have sought the shifting of the mosque, claiming that it was constructed on 13.37 acres of the Sri Krishna Janmabhoomi trust through an alleged demolition of a temple by Mughal emperor Aurangzeb, the petitioners’ counsel Shailesh Dube had said on December 24.

“Such applications moved by Hindu petitioners seeking a survey of Shahi Eidgah mosque are pending in various other cases in different Mathura courts, but none of the courts passed an order allowing a survey. However, the additional civil judge senior division (court no. 3) at Mathura passed the order on the very first date of filing a fresh petition by office bearers of the Hindu Sena on December 8,” Ahmed said.

“On Monday, we will file our objections against the order for the survey of Shahi Eidgah Mosque and will apprise the court that the order was attained by the petitioner while misleading the court by stating incorrect facts and will thus pray for setting aside the order seeking the ameen’s report. Importantly, we were not even heard on the application moved in the fresh petition, as we are yet to receive the summons and appear in court,” Ahmed added.

The order for the survey of the site is on the pattern seen in the Gyanvapi mosque case in Varanasi and came to knowledge of the counsel of the Shahi Eidgah mosque on December 24, when winter vacation had begun.

“The order came while disposing application no. 9C moved by Hindu petitioners, who sought a spot survey report through court ameen, who was also asked to serve notice and copy of order on parties to the case,” Dube had said.

On December 8, the court ordered the ameen to conduct inspection of the site and submit a report along with a map of the spot. The petitioners were asked to take steps within three days of the order. The first date of hearing in the case was December 22, but the presiding officer was on leave on that day and now the case is to be taken up on January 20.

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Like in all the past cases, the management committee of the Shahi Eidgah Mosque at Mathura, the Uttar Pradesh Sunni Central Waqf Board at Lucknow, besides the Sri Krishna Janmbhoomi Trust and Sri Krishna Janmsthan Seva Sansthan have been impleaded as defendants.

The petition has also challenged the settlement dated October 12, 1968, between the Sri Krishna Janmasthan Seva Sangh and Shahi Masjid Eidgah, which was part of suit no. 43 of 1967, and sought cancellation of judgment and the decree based on it. The petitioners have moved an injunction application, which is yet to be heard.

The petitioners have alleged the settlement had no legal validity because the Sri Krishna Janmabhoomi Trust, having ownership and title, was not party to it, and sought an order on transfer of the Eidgah mosque land to the deity.

The mosque committee, in past cases, pleaded that the challenging of settlement reached in 1968 is a time barred plea, with petitioners having no locus standi to file a suit.