Sunni Waqf Board To Challenge ASI Survey Order For Gyanvapi Mosque

The Uttar Pradesh Sunni Central Waqf Board said it will challenge the order of a Varanasi court, allowing the archaeological survey to take place at the Gyanvapi Mosque premises.

The Sunni board asserted that the status of the Mosque is beyond question. Zufar Faruqi, chairman of the Board said, “the order violates the Places of Worship (Special Provisions Act),1991 which has been upheld by the Supreme Court on many occasion”.

A local court in Uttar Pradesh’s Varanasi on Thursday permitted the Archeological Survey of India (ASI) to conduct a survey of Kashi Vishwanath Temple premises and the Gyanvapi Mosque complex.

The court also stated that the Uttar Pradesh government will take care of all the expenses of the survey. ASI will also make a five-member team that will visit the area soon.

Also read: Attack On The Gyanvapi Mosque Is An Attack On The Existence Of Muslims

In a statement, Zufar Faruqi said the order of the Civil Judge of Varanasi Court will be challenged before the Allahabad Court.

“Our understanding is clear that the order is contradictory to the Places of Worship (Special Provisions) Act, 1991. The Places of Worship Act was upheld by the Supreme Court in Ayodhya Judgment,” he added.

He also said that the order of survey is objectionable because technical evidence can only supplement over some foundational facts. In this regard, no proof has been produced before that court that can prove that there was an existing temple at the place of the mosque.

The chairman referred to the title judgment on Babri Masjid and underlined, “Even in the Ayodhya Judgment, the observations made by ASI were of no use, as it could not prove that Babri Masjid was built over the demolished temple and Supreme specifically pointed this out during Judgment.”

The UP Waqf Board strongly stated that this practice of investigating and intimidating places of Muslim worship especially mosques by ASI should be stopped at the earliest and they will approach higher courts immediately against this recent order.