"If You Don't Trust...": Court To Gyanvapi Mosque Committee In Survey Case
The mosque committee said Gyanvapi Mosque has stood at the place for 1,000 years now. The Hindu side has claimed a temple constructed at the site in 1585 was demolished in 1669
New Delhi : The management committee of Varanasi's Gyanvapi Mosque today informed Allahabad High Court that it is seeking a stay on the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) survey because it is concerned that the historic building could collapse.
The court responded angrily by asking the petitioners how they would be able to accept its decision if they couldn't believe the ASI's guarantees that the structure wouldn't be harmed.
The mosque committee brought up the issue in court, claiming that Gyanvapi mosque has been there at the location close to the famous Kashi Vishwanath temple for a thousand years.
The mosque committee responded to the Hindu side's claims that it trusts a survey similar to one that occurred in the Ayodhya Ramjanmabhoomi case in Ayodhya by stating that the circumstances in that case were different and that a comparison could not be made.
According to the petitioners' attorney, "the talk of a temple under Gyanvapi mosque is fictional," and he said that imagining anything cannot be the justification for approving an ASI assessment.
According to the Hindu side, a temple built there in 1585 under Raja Todarmal's direction was destroyed in 1669. They claimed that a group of Hindu women have now asked for permission to worship the gods there.
The mosque committee said that the female petitioners had informed a lower court that they lacked evidence that Hindu deities were present within the mosque compound and that the ASI should obtain it.
"We cannot permit this. You cannot rely on someone else to compile evidence. They argued against the lower court's order to conduct the poll, claiming that it was unlawful.
The Hindu side emphasized the fact that they had evidence and said that an ASIsurvey could be viewed as an expert opinion.
When the court questioned the Hindu side about the need for excavation, the Hindu side's attorney responded, "Yes, but this won't be inside the mosque. ASI will map using radar.If necessary, excavation will also be done—but only in the very last stage.
The court instructed the Hindu side to either videotape the survey or present proof that there won't be any damage done to the mosque after hearing their arguments regarding how this excavation will be carried out.Counsel for the Hindu side approved of this.
The court responded to the mosque committee's claim that it does not believe the promises, saying, "When you don't trust anyone, how will you trust our ruling?"
The mosque committee's argument that the Hindu side's attorney would be liable if the structure collapsed was strongly rejected by the court as well.
When the mosque committee was asked if they were concerned that the building would collapse, they said, "It might, it's 1,000 years old."
The mosque committee responded to promises from the Hindu side that no survey would be undertaken in the area that had been ordered by the Supreme Court to be blocked off by claiming that the survey would cause damage to that area as well.
I am not satisfied with what you are going to do, Chief Justice Pritinker Diwaker responded to the Hindu side's claim that the ASIteam is waiting.
He questioned them in response to their assurance that the structure wouldn't be harmed, "Are you going to drill or is it like a vacuum cleaner? Have you previously completed this work?
According to the Hindu side, the device utilized "will move like a lawn mower" and is "accepted all over the world."
At 4.30 p.m., the court will pick up the hearing again.
After a group of Hindu ladies asked an Uttar Pradesh court for permission to worship gods in the Gyanvapi complex, the Gyanvapi mosque made headlines in 2021.
An object that some individuals claimed to be a shivling was found during a video survey of the complex that a lower court had ordered. However, the mosque's management team claimed that it was a portion of a fountain in the wazookhana (pool) where people might wash their hands and feet prior to prayers.
The pool (wazookhana) was closed off by the Supreme Court because to the delicate nature of the situation.
The Chief Justice inquired as to whether there were photographs of those projects when the ASI said that they had.The court is really questioning the task you are supposed to conduct, he remarked.
The appeal filed by the mosque committee earlier this year challenging the legality of the request to worship Hindu deities located on the property was rejected by the Allahabad High Court.
This verdict opened the door for a Varanasi court decision that permitted an ASI study of the mosque complex, except the pool area.
The mosque committee then went to the Supreme Court to voice its worries about the excavation work.
The petitioners were subsequently given permission by the court to appeal the order for the ASI survey to the Allahabad High Court.
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