Mathura District Court overturns civil court order dismissing suit to remove Shahi Idgah Masjid allegedly built on actual birthplace of Lord Krishna

  • Salil Tiwari
  • 02:12 PM, 19 May 2022

Read Time: 06 minutes

The Mathura District Court today overturned the civil court order and held that the suit to remove the Mathura Shahi Idgah Masjid is maintainable. The civil court had, in September 2020, dismissed the suit that seeks mosque's removal alleging that it is built over the land belonging to the diety and the actual birthplace of Lord Krishna lies beneath it.

District Judge Rajeev Bharti tabled the order which was reserved on May 5 in an appeal preferred by 'Bhagwan Srikrishna Virjman', through next friend Ranjana Agnihotri, 'Shree Krishna Janmbhoomi'—the place of birth of Lord Shree Krishna and six devotees.

The suit was filed alleging that the 13.37 acres of land, which also includes the mosque area, is the Krishna Janmbhoomi land and, an illegal structure was raised by Muslims over it.

The civil court had dismissed the suit on September 30, 2020 citing the bar on admitting the case under the Places of Worship (Special Provisions) Act, 1991. Civil court had said that if the suit is registered a large number of worshippers may come to the court.

In an appeal against the same, the plaintiffs argued before the District Court that as devotees of Lord Krishna, they have a right to move the suit in view of their fundamental religious rights under Article 25 of the Constitution of India to have Darshan and perform puja at the actual birth of place of the diety. They further argued that the suit could not have been rejected on the ground that several others may also approach the court.

The District Court had, in October 2020, admitted the appeal and today it ordered that the right to sue of the plaintiff will stand restored and the case will be restored at its original number.

Recently, the Allahabad High Court on May 12 directed the Mathura court to decide two applications pertaining to Krishna Janmbhoomi- Shahi Idgah dispute expeditiously, preferably within a period of four months.

The order was passed on a petition moved by one Manish Yadav on behalf of Bhagwan Sri Krishna Virajman for early disposal of Yadav's interim injunction application against the Shahi Idgah Masjid Management Committee and UP Sunni Central Waqf Board from entering into 13.37 acres land allegedly belonging to Bhagwan Shri Krishna Virajman.

Futher, after the discovery of 'Shivling' during the survey of the Gyanvapi disputed site at Varanasi, demand has also been raised before a local court in Mathura to seal the Shahi Idgah mosque premises. The application, which is set to be heard on July 1, alleges if the disputed Idgah premises does not get sealed, the Hindu religious relics, which exist there, will be erased and religious character of the property will be changed.