Gyanvapi Mosque Row: Varanasi District Court Judge To Hear Civil Suit Today

The apex court asked the District Magistrate Varanasi to make alternate arrangements for Wazu after consulting the parties.

New Delhi: The Varanasi district court of judge Ajaya Krishna Vishvesha on Monday will hear the civil suit on the Gyanvapi mosque-Kashi Viswanath temple complex dispute after the Supreme Court on Friday ordered the transfer of the pending proceedings to the District Judge asserting that the case was “a complex and sensitive matter”.

The apex court said having regard to the sensitivity of this civil suit, the case is transferred from the civil judge senior division Varanasi to the district judge in Varanasi. The top court ordered that a senior and experienced judicial officer of the Uttar Pradesh Judicial services will hear the case.

A bench of Justices DY Chandrachud, Surya Kant, and PS Narasimha ordered that a "senior and experienced" judicial officer of Uttar Pradesh Higher Judicial Service should examine the case. The civil court file was handed over to the district judge on Saturday.

The application filed by the plaintiff under Order 7 Rule 11 CPC shall be decided on priority by the District Judge on the transfer of suit," the bench ordered.

The apex court bench said District Judge should decide the maintainability of the civil suit in the Gyanvapi-Kashi Vishwanath on priority as sought by Committee of Management Anjuman Intezamia Masjid Varanasi.

It further ordered that its interim order passed on May 17 -- to protect the area where the Shivling was found and access to Muslims for namaz -- shall continue in operation till the maintainability of the suit is decided and thereafter for eight weeks to enable parties to pursue legal remedies.

The top court further asked District Magistrate Varanasi to make alternate arrangements for Wazu after consulting the parties. It has now posted the matter for hearing in July second week.

Five women had filed a petition in the court seeking permission for daily worship at the Shringar Gauri temple, which was allegedly situated inside the Kashi Vishwanath-Gyanvapi Mosque premises. The order of the civil court for undertaking survey and videography at the premises came on their petition.

The survey team had given its report in the court of Civil Judge (Senior Division) Ravi Diwakar. Another petition filed by one Vijay Shankar Rastogi, who had contended that the entire premises belonged to the Kashi Vishwanath and that the Gyanvapi Mosque was only a part of the Temple, had also been pending in the court since 1991.