Gyanvapi Mosque case: What the Varanasi court said

Source: The post is based on the article “Gyanvapi Mosque case: What the Varanasi court said” published in Indian Express on 13th September 2022.

What is the News?

The Varanasi District Court has dismissed the challenge by Anjuman Intezamia Masajid Committee against the civil suits that sought the right to worship Maa Shringar Gauri and other deities within the Gyanvapi mosque premises.

What is the case about?

In 2021, five women filed a civil suit seeking enforcement of their right to worship deities within the Gyanvapi mosque complex. 

In April the Civil Judge (Senior Division) allowed a video survey of the mosque where a Shivling was said to have been found in the wazukhana. 

The Anjuman Intezamia moved to the Supreme Court arguing that the proceedings were an attempt to change the religious character of the mosque. They said that the Places of Worship Act, 1991 bars the conversion of the religious character of a place of worship from how it existed on August 15, 1947.

The Supreme Court transferred the case to the District Judge. The SC said it would intervene only after the District Judge had decided on the preliminary aspects of the case.

What was the district court’s ruling?

The District Court held that the plea was maintainable despite the 1991 law. The court agreed with the main contention of the petitioners– that they have not sought a declaration that the property is a temple instead of a mosque. All they demanded was a right to worship deities.

What is the Places of Worship Act, 1991?

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What are the arguments against the Places of Worship Act, 1991?

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