Asaduddin Owaisi, leader of the All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM), compared Monday’s Gyanvapi Mosque verdict to “a textbook repeat of December 1949 in Babri Masjid.”
A court in Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh, has ordered that the ablution pond of the renowned Gyanvapi Mosque complex be sealed after reports that a “Shivling” was discovered there.
The district magistrate (DM) was instructed by the Varanasi court to shut the area and prevent anyone from entering. The security of the sealed area is the responsibility of the district magisterate, police commissioner, and the CRPF commandant.
“This order itself changes the religious nature of the masjid. This is a violation of 1991 Act,” tweeted Owaisi.
The 1991 Act Owaisi is referring to is the The Places of Worship (Special Provisions) Act, 1991. The Act prohibits conversion of any place of worship and to provide for the maintenance of the religious character of any place of worship as it existed on the 15th day of August, 1947.
The ruling was issued just hours after a court-ordered video survey of the Gyanvapi mosque, which was contested by Muslim administration. The report of the survey is due to be submitted on Tuesday.
“Only 20 Muslims should be allowed to offer Namaz and they should also be stopped from performing Wudu immediately,” directs the court’s order.— IANS