A petition was filed by an RTI activist in a Civil Court in Uttar Pradesh's Aligarh, claiming that the Jama Masjid in the city was built where Jain, Buddhist, and Hindu temples once stood. The allegation arose from responses to queries submitted under the Right to Information (RTI) Act with multiple government departments along with the Aligarh Municipal Corporation.
Activist Pandit Keshav Dev Gautam told TOI that Civil Judge Gajendra Singh announced on Monday that the case would be heard on February 15. "I have been filing queries with several government departments regarding the origins of Jama Masjid, which, according to historical records, was constructed in the early 18th century," Gautam also said.
The mosque is situated in the Upper Kot area, a densely populated, predominantly Muslim neighbourhood in the old city.
He also claimed that a response to one of his RTI queries from the Aligarh Municipal Corporation indicates that the mosque was "constructed on public land without government approval." Based on this information, he has filed a petition seeking to have the current Jama Masjid management committee declared "illegal."
According to a copy of the petition, stamped by the oath commissioner and accessed by PTI, Gautam has requested that the mosque's site be taken over by the government.
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