After Kashi, appointment of advocate commissioner sought in Mathura

AGRA: A petitioner in the case related to the Sri Krishna Janmabhoomi in Mathura on Monday moved an application before a local court seeking the appointment of an advocate commissioner for conducting a spot inspection within the Shahi Eidgah mosque adjoining the Sri Krishna Janmabhoomi to find out if there are any signs related to the Hindu religion on the mosque premises.

The application was filed a day before the hearing on Tuesday before the court of civil judge (senior division) Mathura in an ongoing suit connected to the Sri Krishna Janmabhoomi.

The counsel for the petitioner, seeking removal of the Shahi Eidgah mosque, has mentioned an order passed by the court of civil judge (Senior Division) at Varanasi in case number 693/2021 hearing the matter related to the Kashi Vishwanath temple- Gyanvapi complex wherein an advocate commissioner was asked to conduct and submit a survey report regarding the mosque.

“There are still remains of Hindu religion, including Om, swastik and sheshnaag, within Shahi Eidgah mosque which can prove that it was originally Thakur Keshav Dev Temple temple demolished to have a mosque. These facts are important for disposal of the case but those managing the Shahi Eidgah mosque are inclined to remove these symbols of Hindu religion. Thus, it is very necessary that a survey, including videography and photography of the mosque premises, should be conducted as has been done at Kashi Vishwanath temple-Gyanvapi complex in Varanasi, ” stated Mahendra Pratap Singh, the counsel for the petitioner.

“We have provided copies of the application to those representing Shahi Eidgah mosque so that court may hear it on Tuesday. The matter is urgent and requires prompt hearing because evidences at the mosque might be removed. The respondents are changing the status of the property in dispute and thus the need for an expert commission is urgent,” stated Mahendra Pratap Singh, a lawyer who is one of the petitioners and counsel in the case.

The other petitioners include Jai Bhagwan Goyal from Delhi, Saurabh Gaur and Rajendra Maheshwari.

When contacted, Tanveer Ahmad, the counsel for the management committee of the Shahi Eidgah mosque, denied receiving a copy of the application. He criticised the counsel for petitioners over “such tactics” when arguments are on in the case and they have to argue tomorrow on the issue of maintainability of case before the court of the civil judge (senior division) at Mathura. An application seeking the appointment of advocate commissioner had been moved in the past also and is yet to be disposed of. The management committee of Shahi Eidgah mosque, adjoining Sri Krishna Janambhoomi, had moved an application challenging the maintainability of the suit before civil judge (senior division) in Mathura. It had prayed for dismissal of the suit. The prayer is being heard currently.

“These are delaying tactics by the petitioners and such application for the appointment of an advocate commissioner cannot be heard at this stage when the

Shahi Eidgah management committee has challenged the maintainability of the suit,” Ahmad said.

“The management committee of the Shahi Eidgah (mosque) had moved an application challenging the maintainability of the suit before civil judge (senior division) in Mathura and had prayed for dismissal of the suit under Order 7 Rule 11 of the Civil Procedure Code,” Ahmed said.

“We had based our application challenging the maintainability of the ongoing suit on provisions laid in the Places of Worship (Special Provisions) Act, 1991, which prohibits conversion of any place of worship and provides for the maintenance of the religious character of any place of worship as it existed on August 15, 1947,” Ahmed added.

A suit was filed on December 23, 2020 in the court of the Mathura civil judge (senior division) on behalf of the deity, Bhagwan Keshav Dev (Lord Krishna), seeking removal of the Shahi Eidgah (mosque) adjacent to the Shri Krishna temple complex in Mathura, and transfer of 13.37-acre land to the deity.

About half-a-dozen cases have been filed in the courts of Mathura on the Sri Krishna Janmabhoomi issue in the past oneand-a-half-years. The petitioners in these cases have challenged the settlement dated 12.10.1968 between the Sri Krishna Janmasthan Seva Sangh and Shahi Masjid Eidgah, which was part of suit no. 43 of 1967. The petitioners alleged that the settlement had no legal validity because the Sri Krishna Janmabhoomi Trust, having ownership and title, was not party to it. Thus, the court should order transfer of the Eidgah mosque land to the deity, they said.