'Puja to continue': Allahabad HC dismisses Gyanvapi Mosque prayer plea
The Allahabad High Court on Monday refused to stay the Varanasi District Court's decision to allow Hindu prayers in the cellar of the Gyanvapi Mosque in Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh. The appeal was filed by the Anjuman Intezamia Masjid Committee after the Hindu side conducted a puja in the mosque's southern cellar—"Vyas Ka Tehkhana"—earlier this month. To recall, the high court reserved its order on the plea on February 15.
Why does this story matter?
Right-wing Hindu outfits assert that several mosques, including the Gyanvapi Mosque, were built by Muslim invaders by demolishing Hindu temples. After its formation, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) fomented the issue during the 1980s and 1990s, highlighting it as a reclamation project for Hindus. However, some Hindu priests allegedly rejected those claims by right-wing organizations—especially over the Gyanvapi dispute—blaming them for inciting communal tensions.
Single-judge bench delivers verdict
"After going through the entire records of the case...the court did not find any ground to interfere in the judgment," a bench of Justice Rohit Ranjan Agarwal said. On January 31, a Varanasi court instructed the district magistrate—appointed the receiver—to arrange for the Hindu side to perform puja, with a pujari nominated by the Shri Kashi Vishwanath Temple Trust. The decision prompted the mosque committee to file an appeal with the Allahabad High Court on February 2.
Ownership dispute over cellar in district court
The mosque complex has four "tehkhanas" in the basement, and the Vyas family claims possession of one of them. Somnath Vyas, a member of the family, prayed in the cellar before its sealing in 1993, as per one Shailendra Pathak's petition. Pathak, a family member, argued in the district court that their hereditary priest status entitles them to access and worship within the structure.
Basement in possession of mosque committee: Muslim side lawyer
The Anjuman Itezamia Masajid Committee's counsel, Akhlaque Ahmad, has, however, refuted the claims that the Vyas family had ownership of the cellar. He said, "The Vyas family never performed puja in the basement. No idol was there in the cellar. It is wrong to say that the people of Vyas family were in possession." "The basement is in the possession of the...masjid committee," he added.
