Delhi’s Lal Masjid Imam Asked To Vacate, Centre Says No Demolition ‘Until April 29’

Seeking time to respond to the Delhi Waqf Board’s petition against the proposed demolition of the ancient Lal Masjid on Lodhi Road, the Union government has informed Delhi High Court that no further action would be taken until April 29.

According to the Indian Express, Additional Solicitor General Chetan Sharma told the court that there will be no action towards demolition of the mosque until then.

The Delhi Waqf Board sought the court’s intervention against any such demolition, saying police have informed the mosque’s imam to vacate the premises as it was going to be demolished.

The petition claims that the mosque is a Waqf property since 1970 and the dispute regarding the title of the land is pending before the Waqf Tribunal.

On Tuesday the court had asked the Centre and Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) to inform them about the plans, if any, to demolish the mosque. It also warned the government that if any such action is taken without informing the court it would be treated as contempt.

Senior advocate Sanjoy Ghose, representing the Waqf Board, claimed that the case was dragging on because of repeated adjournments and the vacant member positions in the Waqf Tribunal.

The Waqf petition says that the graveyard and the mosque situated along the link road in Aliganj near Lodhi Road is a Waqf property. The graveyard space is occupied by CRPF and the mosque alone is surviving. 

“Taking advantage of this situation, the respondents are trying to demolish an ancient mosque situated in the said property,” the petition contends, adding that construction of certain buildings at the graveyard is taking place in full swing, despite the pendency of the case before the tribunal.

As per the petition, the Centre, in a 2017 case related to the dispute, had told the High Court that the land has been allotted to CRPF, but the mosque and graves “are not being damaged and are preserved”. The land has been allotted to the CRPF by the Urban Development Ministry for construction of office accommodation, shifting of the canteen, barracks for personnel and parking of vehicles, as per an official order attached with the petition. In October 2017, the Board approached the tribunal against the allotment of the land to the CRPF.