E-Paper
Plea in Mathura for ASI survey of mosque
Agra A petition filed in a local court in Mathura on Wednesday sought an archaeological survey of Choti Masjid in the Agra Fort premises to determine if Mughal rulers buried idols of Hindu god Krishna at the spot after vandalising an ancient temple that stood in Mathura
Agra A petition filed in a local court in Mathura on Wednesday sought an archaeological survey of Choti Masjid in the Agra Fort premises to determine if Mughal rulers buried idols of Hindu god Krishna at the spot after vandalising an ancient temple that stood in Mathura.
The petition, filed by an activist Shailendra Singh, cited an April 8 order by a Varanasi court that ordered an archaeological survey of the Gyanvapi Masjid complex, which abuts the Kashi Vishwanath Temple, to determine if the mosque was built by Mughal emperors after razing a Hindu temple, to justify its own basis.
That order is currently being challenged in the Allahabad high court by the Gyanvapi mosque committee and the Uttar Pradesh Sunni Central Waqf Board.
Singh’s petition in the court of civil judge (senior division), Mathura, argued that a “magnificent temple” was built in Mathura by Bundela king Raja Bir Singh Dev at a cost of ₹33 lakh and it was demolished in January 1670 by Mughal emperor Aurangzeb.
‘The idols of Lord Krishna were taken away and were buried under the stairs of the Choti Masjid in the Deewan-e-Khas of the Agra Fort; as such, the director of ASI [Archaeological Survey Of India] be directed to conduct scientific excavation and reinstate the idols moved,” stated the petition.
The Mathura court accepted the petition and fixed May 10 as the date of hearing. ASI is also tasked with the survey at the Gyanvapi complex.
Singh’s petition – as well as several pending petitions in courts across Mathura – seek the removal of the Shahi Eidgah adjacent to the Sri Krishna temple complex in Mathura, and transfer of the 13.37-acre land to the temple deity, Bhagwan Sri Krishna Virajman.
On September 30, last year, a case was filed on behalf of the deity in the court of the civil judge in Mathura but was dismissed. The petitioner, Ranjana Agnihotri, filed an appeal in the court of Mathura district judge on October 12. The case is pending.
Another petition was filed in the court of district judge, and three more in the court of civil judge. All petitions had common prayers.
“A temple of Keshav Dev (Krishna) used to exist in a vast area of 13.37 acre in Mathura. Aurangzeb dismantled the temple and raised a structure at the same place, which is now known as Eidgah. Many of the stones having symbols of Hindu architecture were removed from the Janmabhoomi and placed in the Eidgah mosque,” said Mahendra Singh, who filed one of the petitions in the Mathura civil court.
