Maintainability of appeal challenged by Eidgah trust; next hearing on Jan 11

AGRA: The court of the Mathura district judge has fixed January 11 as the next date of hearing in the Sri Krishna Janmabhoomi case, in which some appellants have sought removal of the Shahi Eidgah (mosque) situated adjacent to the Shri Krishna temple complex in Mathura and transfer of 13.37-acre land to the deity. The lawyer for the Committee of the Management Trust, Shahi Masjid (Mathura) has challenged the maintainability of the appeal filed against the order of the civil judge who had dismissed the appellant’s petition last year. The petitioners have claimed the Shahi Eidgah mosque was built on the same spot where a temple was razed to the ground by then Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb.

“The court heard arguments on maintainability of appeal. The respondent placed their arguments, which were opposed by us,” said Hari Shankar Jain, the counsel for petitioners who had filed an appeal in the court of the Mathura district judge after the civil judge dismissed their petition last year. The presiding officer of the district judge’s court was on leave at the previous hearing on December 10 last year and the next hearing was fixed for January 7.

The petitioner has already filed objections to applications moved by the Mathura Chaturved Parishad and Akhil Bhartiya Teerth Purohit Mahasabha, which have sought to become parties to the case.

The Akhil Bhartiya Teerth Purohit Mahasabha and the Mathur Chaturved Parishad have pitted themselves against those organisations and individuals, who want removal of the 17th century mosque and handover of its land to the temple trust.

Three out of four defendants have already appeared in court. The UP Sunni Waqf Board, Committee of Management Trust Shahi Masjid and Sri Krishna Janmasthan Sewa Sansthan, impleaded as defendants, have already appeared in court through their lawyers.

Earlier last year, Ranjana Agnihotri, a lawyer had filed their application in the court of the civil judge (senior division) Mathura, seeking removal of the mosque and transfer of land to the deity. The petitioners had sought cancellation of the judgments and decrees dated July 20, 1973 and November 7, 1974 in civil suit number 43 of 1967 by the civil judge Mathura.