Gyanvapi Mosque Case: SC Directs Varanasi Collector To Hold Meeting To Provide 'Wazu' Facilities In Complex

The Varanasi Court ordered the wazukhana, where Muslim worshipers used to perform ablutions before prayers, to be sealed in May of last year.

The Gyanvapi Mosque in Varanasi.

Source : File Photo/PTI

The Supreme Court on Monday directed Varanasi collector to hold a meeting on Tuesday to provide 'wazu' facilities for Muslims in the Gyanvapi mosque complex, reported news agency PTI. An application submitted by the Committee of Management Anjuman Intezamia Masjid, which oversees the Gyanvapi mosque in Varanasi, was heard by a bench that included Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud, Justice PS Narasimha, and Justice JB Pardiwala.

“The solicitor general assures the court that a meeting shall be convened tomorrow by the district collector so that a congenial working arrangement is provided,” the bench noted in the order, as quoted by PTI.

Ahmadi added that the Supreme Court's order had made it clear that Muslims' right to perform wazu and other religious observances will not be restricted by the order to seal the area.

The Varanasi Court ordered the wazukhana, where Muslim worshipers used to perform ablutions before prayers, to be sealed in May of last year, following the plaintiffs' claim that a "Shiva Linga" had been found during a survey inside the Gyanvapi Mosque premises.

The Civil Judge Senior Division at Varanasi was considering a suit moved by five Hindu women asking for year-long access to pray at a Hindu shrine behind the western wall of the Gyanvapi Mosque complex in Varanasi.

Proceedings Of The Case

The Supreme Court made it clear on May 17, 2022, that the Varanasi Court's order to seal the area would not prevent Muslims from entering the mosque to offer namaz and observe religious observances. The in-between time request was subsequently stretched out until additional orders.

On May 20, 2022, the High Court moved the suit to Varanasi Court, seeing that a senior and experienced legal official ought to manage the matter considering the responsiveness of the issues in question. The court ordered that the District Court should hear the Masjid Committee's applications under Order 7 Rule 11 CPC, which questioned the suit's maintainability on priority.

In September 2022, the District Court ruled that the Places of Worship Act of 1991 did not prevent the Masjid Committee from challenging the suit's maintainability. The Varanasi District Court then, at that point, dismissed an aplication filed by plaintiffs for carbon-dating and scientific investigation of the "Shiv ling".

Against this, a revision plea was presented to the Allahabad High Court. In this case, the Allahabad High Court gave the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) another chance to respond to the question of whether or not the "Shiva Ling" could be safely evaluated for its age. On or before April 17, the Court gave her one last chance to respond to the case.

On April 21, 2023, the Supreme Court had previously agreed to list a plea requesting the consolidation of all Gyanvapi Mosque-related lawsuits.