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Tag: Shahi Idgah mosque

  • Mathura court directed for speedy disposal of plea for deputing advocate to survey Shahi Idgah mosque

    By PTI

    MATHURA: An additional district judge here on Thursday directed a lower court for speedy disposal of a plea for appointing a court commissioner to survey the Shahi Idgah mosque and verify the claims of temple’s signs in it.

    The petitioners moved the court of additional district judge with a revision application after the lower court of civil judge (senior division) on May 23 asked Shahi Idgah mosque’s management committee and others to file their objections to a plea seeking survey of the mosque and fixed July 1 as the next date of hearing on the reopening of courts after summer vacation.

    “Revision application was disposed of with the direction for the lower court to dispose of the plea regarding sending an advocate commissioner to the mosque on a day-to-day basis from next hearing,” District Government Counsel Sanjai Gaur said.

    Rajendra Maheshwari, the counsel for the petitioners of the suit, said, “Lower court of civil judge (senior division) has also been directed by Additional District Judge Sanjai Chaudhari (in-charge district judge for appeal and revision) not to delay hearing of the application pertaining to sending an advocate commissioner (to mosque). The application was submitted by Delhi-based Jai Bhagwan Goyal and four others.”

    The petitioners had filed an application in the court of Civil Judge (senior division) Jyoti Singh on May 23 for sending an advocate commissioner to survey Shahi Idgah Masjid complex claiming presence of temple marks in the mosque, Maheshwari said.

    The court instead of disposing of the application filed under urgency clause, had set July 1 for next date of hearing, the petitioners’ counsel said.

    Aggrieved by the decision, the petitioners moved a revision application against the order of civil judge (senior division) in the court of District Judge Mathura, who transferred the application in the court of ADJ (7th) on Thursday, Maheshwari said.

    In the revision application, the order of lower court was termed defective since the urgency clause mentioned in the application was not considered, the counsel said.

    The lower court is hearing a bunch of suits for the removal of Shahi Idgah Masjid from near the Krishna Janmabhoomi temple in the Katra Keshav Dev Temple complex and subsequent interim applications for appointing a court commissioner to survey the mosque.

    The petitioners have sought the mosque’s survey, claiming the existence of several signs of temples, like those of “om, swastika and lotus” inside it besides its alleged “Hindu architecture”.

    The pleas have been filed by deity Thakur Keshav Dev Ji Maharaj virajman (in-situ) in its capacity as a juristic person, represented by advocates Mahendra Pratap Singh and Rajendra Maheshwari as its “next friend”, among others.

    The other petitioners included United Hindu Front founder Jai Bhagwan Goyal, a Delhi resident, and Vrindavan’s Dharm Raksha Sangh president Saurabh Gaur.

    The suits filed by Singh and others in December 2020 list Shahi Idgah Masjid’s Intezamia committee’s secretary, president/chairman of the UP Sunni Central Waqf Board, Srikrishna Janmasthan Seva Sansthan’s secretary and Sri Krishna Janmabhoomi Trust as respondents.

  • Petitioners fined Rs 250 for seeking removal of Shahi Idgah mosque near Mathura’s Krishna temple

    By PTI

    MATHURA (UTTAR PRADESH): A Mathura court hearing a plea for shifting the Shahi Idgah mosque from near the Lord Krishna’s Katra Keshav Dev temple here, has imposed a fine of Rs 250 on its petitioners for seeking an adjournment of the proceeding.

    Civil Judge (Senior Division) Jyoti Singh imposed the fine on Friday, ADGC Civil Sanjai Gaur said on Saturday. The judge imposed the fine as petitioners’ counsel Mahendra Pratap Singh sought a deferment on hearing of arguments on the maintainability of the plea.

    Singh, who has moved the court on behalf of the deity as its “next friend” for removal of the mosque, had first sought adjudication of his five applications related to the suit for the removal of the mosque.

    Besides advocate Singh, who has filed the plea, also claiming to be a descendant of “Brijwasi” Lord Krishna, there are four other petitioners, including the deity, Virajman Thakur Keshav Dev Ji Maharaj Katra Keshav Dev.

    The three other petitioners are advocate Rajendra Maheshwari of Jagannathpuri, Mathura, the United Hindu Front founder Jay Bhagwan Goyal, a Delhi resident and Vrindavan’s Dharm Raksha Sangh president Saurabh Gaur.

    A deity is considered to be a juristic person with all the rights of a normal individual, including the right to sue and be sued, and a deity is represented in court by what is known as its “next friend”. Explaining the implication of the court ruling, advocate Mahendra Pratap Singh said the fine may not be deemed to be imposed on the deity but only other petitioners, including himself.

    He, however, pointed out that in accordance with various Supreme Court rulings, just as various deities are entitled to acquire properties, they are liable to pay taxes as well. The joint plea was filed against the secretary of the Shahi Idgah Masjid’s ‘intezamia’ (management) committee, the president of the UP Sunni Central Waqf Board and the secretary of the Srikrishna Janmasthan Seva Sansthan.

    It has been claimed in the suit that the Shahi Idgah Masjid has been built on a part of the 13.37-acre land of the Katra Keshav Dev temple. As the proceeding began on Friday, advocate Tanveer Ahmad, appearing for the mosque’s management committee, sought the court to begin hearing on the maintainability of the suit.

    Advocate Singh, however, sought deferment of arguments on the maintainability, contending that the court should first decide his eight other applications related to the suit. On a written request by Singh for the adjournment, the court did defer the hearing to April 19 but imposed a fine of Rs 250 on the petitioners.

  • Krishna Janmabhoomi row: HC restores plea seeking removal of Mathura’s Shahi Idgah mosque

    By PTI

    PRAYAGRAJ: The Allahabad High Court has restored a petition seeking the removal of Mathura’s Shahi Idgah Mosque, which is claimed to be built on Krishna Janambhoomi, the birthplace of Lord Krishna.

    The main petition was dismissed in default on January 19, 2021, as the petitioner appeared in person and not through a lawyer. The application for restoration was filed immediately thereafter.

    In an order on February 17, a division bench comprising Chief Justice Rajesh Bindal and Justice Prakash Padia restored the plea on grounds that the application to restore it was filed without any delay.

    “For the reason stated in the application, the same is allowed. Order dated January 19, 2021, dismissing the main petition in default is recalled. Let the main petition be now listed as per roster on July 25, 2022,” the court said.

    Earlier in 2020, a Mathura court had dismissed a plea seeking the removal of the mosque.

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    A group of people had moved the Mathura court over the 17th-century mosque they claim was built at the birthplace of Lord Krishna, within the 13.37-acre premises of the Katra Keshav Dev temple.

    The suit had demanded the annulment of an earlier Mathura court ruling, ratifying a land deal reached between the Shri Krishna Janmasthan Seva Sansthan and the Shahi Idgah Management Committee on the mosque.

    The suit was filed on behalf of child deity Bhagwan Shrikrishna Virajman, through the “next friend” Ranjana Agnihotri and seven others.

    Next friend is a legal term for a person who represents someone directly unable to maintain a suit.

    The petition had named the Uttar Pradesh Sunni Central Waqf Board; Shahi Masjid Idgah Trust; Shri Krishna Janambhoomi Trust; and Shri Krishna Janmasthan Seva Sansthan as defendants.

    The plaintiffs sought an order directing the mosque management to “remove the construction raised by them encroaching upon the land within the area of the Katra Ksehav Dev temple”.

    The plea demanded prohibitory injunctions restraining the defendants, their workers, supporters, men, attorneys and every person acting under them from entering the premises.

  • Row over Lord Krishna’s birthplace: Mathura court requested to reject plea against mosque

    By PTI
    MATHURA: A Muslim body on Monday requested a Mathura court to reject the plea seeking the removal of a mosque near a temple which the devouts believe marks the birthplace of Lord Krishna.

    The plea seeking the removal of the 17th century Shahi Idgah mosque from the 13.37-acre premises of the Katra Keshav Dev temple was filed by advocate Mahendra Pratap Singh and four others.

    Demanding that the plea be rejected, the Intazamia Shahi Masjid Committee in a written statement to the court of Civil Judge (Senior Division) cited provisions of the Places of Worship (Special Provisions) Act, 1991, which prohibits the filing of a lawsuit to reclaim a place of worship or seek a change in its character from what prevailed on August 15, 1947.

    “The suit deserves cancellation since the Shahi Idgah Masjid was constructed prior to August 15,1947,” the statement submitted by the committee said.

    The Muslim body through its counsel Neeraj Sharma said in the statement that neither the mosque was constructed on the land of the Keshav Dev temple nor any change could be made in the present position as it was constructed centuries ago.

    The construction of the structure cannot be challenged since it is the property of the Waqf Board and was constructed in 1669, the 31-point statement said, adding that it is incorrect to say that the mosque was constructed on a part of the land belonging to the temple.

    The court has fixed April 1 as the date for the hearing in the case.

  • Plea for removal of Mathura’s Shahi Idgah mosque: Court issues notices

    By PTI
    MAGTHURA: A Mathura court has issued notices to the Shahi Idgah Masjid management committee and others, seeking their stands on a fresh plea for the removal of a 17th-century mosque from near the birthplace of Lord Krishna in the Katra Keshav Dev temple complex here.

    Additional District and Sessions Judge Dev Kant Shukla on Saturday issued notices after admitting the plea, ruling that the suit is “maintainable and hence admissible” for detailed hearing, District Government Counsel (Civil) Sanjai Gaur said.

    After admitting the civil suit, the court also issued notices to three other respondents — the president of Sunni Waqf Board, Lucknow and the managing trustees of Sri Krishna Janmabhumi Trust Katra Keshav Dev temple and Sri Krishna Seva Sansthan, Katra Keshav Dev temple.

    The court sought the stands of the four respondents to the new plea by March 8, the next date of hearing, DGC Gaur said.

    The fresh plea has been filed by priest Pawan Kumar Shastri of the old Keshav Dev temple on behalf of the temple’s deity, Thakur Keshav Dev Ji Maharaj Virajman.

    ‘Sevayat’ Shastri has made three demands in his plea, firstly claiming the right to manage the entire 13.37 acres land of the Katra Keshav Dev temple complex, including the land on which the Shahi Idgah mosque stands.

    He sought the right to manage the entire temple complex claiming that his ancestors have been serving as priests of the deity for decades and he has inherited the right from them as the temple’s real ‘sevayat’ (priest).

    Shastri has also demanded the annulment of a 1967 ruling of Mathura court which has ratified a land deal between the Shri Krishna Janmasthan Seva Sansthan and Shahi Idgah Management Committee, allowing the existence of the mosque near the temple.

    In his third plea, Shastri has demanded a court direction to the Shahi Masjid Idgah’s management committee and Lucknow’s Sunni Waqf Board’s president to remove the mosque from its current location.

    Besides the present suit, three more suits are pending with Mathura courts on the issue.

    One suit, filed by advocate Mahendra Pratap Singh on behalf of five plaintiffs, has been admitted for the hearing by the court.

    The admissibility of two others, filed respectively by advocate Hari Shankar Jain for Sri Krishna Virajman through the deity’s “next friend” Ranjana Agnihotri and others and advocate Shailendra Singh for Hindu Army chief Manish Yadav, are yet to be decided, DGC (Civil) Gaur said.