‘Historic’ Mosques in New Delhi Receive ‘Encroachment’ Notices
Local news broadcaster India Today said in a report that notices were issued to two prominent mosques over the weekend by the Indian Railways, claiming that the land of Masjid Bachchu Shah and Masjid Takia Babbar Shah belongs to them.
The notice stated that "their land has been illegally encroached upon, and they are urging the concerned parties to voluntarily remove any unauthorized buildings, temples, mosques, or shrines constructed on their property."
Failure to comply within the given timeframe will result the railways taking necessary action to reclaim their land, according to the notice.
The railways have also stated that the parties responsible for the encroachments will be held accountable for any damages incurred during the process.
The managing committee of the mosques says that they are historic structures built centuries ago, predating the railway infrastructure.
"The two mosques were over 400 years old and existed before rail infra came up at the two locations. The mosques are also part of the 123 properties, including mosques, mausoleums and graveyards, over which the board is engaged in a court battle with the Centre. The matter is currently pending in the high court," Delhi Waqf Board official Mehfooz Mohammad told daily The Hindustan Times.
Hafiz Matlub Karim, a member of the managing committee, has expressed concerns over the notice, stating that it lacks proper authorization and considers it harassment aimed at disturbing the peaceful atmosphere.
"The notice which was pasted was without any signature and stamp...this activity is harassment and an attempt to vitiate the atmosphere," he said.
Mosque demolitions and land claims in India are contentious and controversial issues that have sparked communal violence and legal disputes in the past and present.
One of the famous mosque demolition cases was the Babri Masjid, a mosque built in the 16th century in Ayodhya, Uttar Pradesh. It was demolished by a mob of Hindu nationalists in 1992, who claimed that it was built on the birthplace of Lord Ram, a revered Hindu deity. The demolition triggered riots that killed over 2,000 people across India. A long-running legal battle ensued over the ownership of the land, which was finally settled by the Supreme Court in 2019, granting it to a Hindu trust for the construction of a Ram temple.
Another ongoing case is that of the Gyanvapi Mosque, a mosque built in the 17th century in Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh. It is facing a legal challenge from a Hindu group that claims that it was built on the ruins of an ancient temple dedicated to Lord Shiva. The group filed a petition in a local court seeking a survey of the mosque premises by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) to ascertain if there are any remains of a temple underneath. The court admitted the petition and issued an order for an ASI survey in April 2021.
Source: Agencies
