Mathura temple case: Hindus offer alternative land for mosque

Hemendra Chaturvedi hemendra

Hemendra Chaturvedi

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hemendra.chaturvedi@htlive.com

AGRA Petitioners in the Shri Krishna Janmabhoomi case awaiting hearing in a court of Mathura have offered the opposing parties representing Muslims one-and-a-half times more land some distance away from the Braj area where the temple and mosque that are subject of the legal dispute are currently located, and urged them to give up their claim on the land.

This offer has been made by the petitioners quoting the 2019 judgment by the Supreme Court in the Ram Janmabhoomi case, where the court ruled in favour of the Hindu parties but asked the government to provide land to the Muslims for a mosque. According to the petitioners, the UP Sunni Central Waqf Board and the management committee of Shahi Masjid, Eidgah should accept the offer to resolve the matter amicably.

One of the petitioners, Mahendra Pratap Singh, an advocate, moved an application to this effect in the court of civil judge (senior division) at Mathura on Tuesday. He is also the president of Shri Krishna Janmabhoomi Mukti Andolan Samiti and claims that his organisation will make the land available to Muslims, if they accept the offer.

The court of civil judge (senior division) in Mathura has fixed July 5 as the next date of hearing.

Tanveer Ahmed, secretary and counsel for Shahi Masjid Eidgah in Mathura, denied that a copy of the application has been provided to them. “No copy of such application was handed over to us. We will examine the averments made therein after receiving the copy,” said Ahmed.

”The Supreme Court, in its judgment in Ram Janmabhoomi case of Ayodhya, stated that Babri structure was built after bringing down Ram Janmabhoomi temple in Ayodhya over the same land. The court passed the order holding the disputed place as that owned by ‘Ramlala’ and in lieu of it, Muslims were provided land to have their place of worship across river Saryu in Ayodhya,” stated Singh.

“We have made an offer to the opposite parties (UP Sunni Central Waqf Board and management committee of Shahi Masjid Eidgah) to give up their claim on the land originally belonging to the temple where the Eidgah was built. And in lieu thereof, they (Muslims) would be offered land more than one and a half times anywhere beyond 84 kos of Braj,” it added.

A suit was filed in 2020 on behalf of deity Lord Krishna seeking removal of the Shahi Eidgah (mosque), adjacent the temple complex in Mathura. Ahmed, however, said that suit itself has been challenged.