The Allahabad High Court on Wednesday dismissed a petition by the Anjuman Intezamia Mosque Committee challenging a suit by five Hindu women seeking the right to worship Shringar Gauri inside the disputed Gyanvapi campus of Varanasi. A single-judge bench of Justice JJ Munir pronounced the judgment. The verdict comes after an application was filed against the decision of the District Judge in the case of five women in Varanasi court.
Appearing for the Hindu side in the case Vishnu Shankar Jain called it a "historic" verdict.
"The court clearly has said that Anjuman Intezamia Mosque Committee's petition is not maintainable and dismissed it," he said while speaking to news agency ANI.
Subhash Nandan Chaturvedi, another lawyer representing the Hindu side calling it a "big win" welcomed the court's decision.
After the completion of the hearing in the case, the High Court reserved its judgment on December 23.
Notably, the Muslim side had filed a petition in the High Court against the decision of the district judge. The arrangement committee of Gyanvapi mosque had filed the petition.
Several people, including the five women who filed the case in the court of Varanasi, were made parties in the case. The case was primarily to decide whether people regularly worship Shringar Gauri on Gyanvapi premises.
Five women including Delhi's Rakhi Singh had filed a petition two years ago in the district court of Varanasi. On the orders of the Supreme Court, the hearing of this case was going on in the court of the District Judge of Varanasi.
The case was transferred to the district judge's court in May last year. The Muslim side filed an objection in the court and appealed to dismiss the petition of women including Rakhi Singh.
It was said on behalf of the Muslim side that this application is not maintainable under Order 7 Rule 11. After months of hearing, the district judge's court reserved its judgment in August last year. District Judge AK Vishwesh's court gave its verdict on September 12 last year.
The district judge allowed the Rakhi Singh case to continue, rejecting the objection of the Muslim side. The arrangement committee of Gyanvapi Masjid had challenged the same decision in the High Court from the court of the district judge of Varanasi on September 12 last year.
Muslim side argued in the High Court petition that it was once again reiterating that the matter cannot be heard under the Places of Worship Act of 1991.
The Muslim side argued that this civil suit is not maintainable under the Places of Worship Act of 1991 as well as the Central Waqf Act of 1995.