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As per the plea, there are five entrances along the eastern wall in S2, originally intended for access to S1, however, these entrances have been blocked using lakhauri bricks and/or stone blocks set in lime mortar
A local court at Varanasi today posted the plea seeking a survey by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) of blocked cellars at Gyanvapi premises for hearing on February 15. The matter was placed before the ADJ-1st Court as the District Judge retired on January 31.
Rakhi Singh, a plaintiff in the Shringar Gauri Case, had moved the petition before the Varanasi Court. As per the petition, since some cellars were blocked during the recent ASI survey, the hindrance preveted scientific investigation of that area.
The petition mentions that within the Gyanwapi precincts (settlement plot no. 9130), there are cellars numbered N1 to N5 in the north and S1 to S3 in the south. Cellars N1 and S1 are completely inaccessible due to blocked entrances.
The plea states that the four entrances on the western wall of N2, providing access to N1, are all obstructed. No information is available regarding the dimensions or inner arrangement of N1.
Moreover, there are five entrances along the eastern wall in S2, originally intended for access to S1. Unfortunately, these entrances have been blocked using lakhauri bricks and/or stone blocks set in lime mortar, the plea claims.
The plea emphasises that the unsurveyed cellars with blocked entrances, secured by bricks and stones, pose no structural risk as the load is not reliant on these obstructions, and if the ASI expert remove it carefully, the safety of the structure in question would not be jeopardized.
Further, the plea highlights that the recent ASI survey report explicitly mentioned the discovery of a Shiv Linga, idols of Lord Hanuman, Lord Vishnu, and Lord Krishna, along with various other sculptures and artifacts.
The plea stresses that the determination of the religious character of settlement plot no. 9130 (Gyanwapi precincts) on August 15, 1947, requires evidence from both parties and to achieve this, an ASI survey of the remaining blocked cellar is necessary.
Therefore, the petition, which has been filed through Advocate Saurabh Tiwari, seeks direction to the ASI to undertake the scientific investigation/survey of the remaining cellar (S1 & N1 and other cellars, if any ) by GPR survey and other modern scientific methodology without causing damage to the existing structure.
A civil revision plea by Rakhi Singh is pending before the Allahabad High Court for Archeological Survey of India (ASI) survey of the Wazukhana of the Gyanvapi complex.
Case Title: Rakhi Singh v. State Of Uttar Pradesh and Others
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