Omar Rashid 
New Delhi: Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath has said that the Muslim community should “in the most respectful manner” hand over the Mughal-era Shahi Jama Masjid in Sambhal to Hindus if scriptural and archaeological evidence show that a Hari Har temple dedicated to Kalki existed at the site before the mosque was built.
Adityanath, in a reference to the Shahi Jama Masjid in Sambhal, which has existed for the past five centuries, also said that one shouldn’t refer to “any disputed structure” as a mosque. He was speaking at a conclave organised by media house Aaj Tak at the Kumbh Mela in Prayagraj on Friday.
Mosque at Sambhal in Uttar Pradesh (1789). Pencil and wash drawing, 29.7 x 48.8 cm. British Library, London. Photo: Thomas Daniell, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
His comments come in the backdrop of the Supreme Court order from December 2023 directing courts in the country to not register any new suits claiming other religious places. The apex court, which was hearing petitions challenging The Places of Worship Act, 1991, also barred courts from passing any effective interim orders or final orders, including directions for surveys, in the pending suits, till further notice.
The order also applied to Sambhal, where Hindu activists have tried to seek religious rights of worship at the Shahi Jama Masjid, claiming that there once existed a Hari Har temple at the site.
Responding to the Aaj Tak anchor’s questions, Adityanath said, “Any disputed structure should not be called a mosque. The day we stop calling it a mosque, people will also stop going there. In any manner, it goes against the principles of Islam if a mosque-like structure is built after hurting someone’s faith. Any kind of worship at such sites is not acceptable to God either. Islam does not mandate any kind of structure for worship, but Sanatana Dharma does.”
‘Restoration of ancestors’ heritage’
The UP chief minister said it was time to think of a “new Bharat,” which could feel proud of its heritage. He also seemed to defend the trend of filing suits to seek possession of ancient mosques by Hindu activists across the country. “If we are talking about the restoration of the heritage linked to our ancestors, there is nothing wrong in it,” said Adityanath.
Referring to the Sambhal mosque, Adityanath proposed that Muslims should hand it over to the Hindus without getting into the entangle of courts if evidence shows that the structure was built after the demolition of a Hari Har temple.
“If there is evidence of Hari Har temple, if there are scriptural evidences of faith and if the Archaeological Survey of India finds evidence there, then I feel that without the need for the intervention of the court, the followers of Islam should tell the followers of Sanatan Dharma in the most respectful manner that, ‘this is yours, you take care of your belonging and felicitate and welcome the 10th avatar of shri Hari Vishnu with great splendour,” said Adityanath.
Also read: Places of Worship Act, 1991: What Stand Will the Union Govt Take at SC Hearing?
He also asked the Muslim community to “accept their mistakes” regarding the alleged demolition of the Hari Har temple in Sambhal and not to “put unnecessary obstacles in the path of the symbols of Sanatan Dharma.” This would lead to a new wave of communal harmony in the country, he added.
His remarks came just hours after the Supreme Court stayed the execution of a ‘notice’ issued by the Sambhal municipal authorities regarding the start of worship and holy bath in a well located near the Shahi Jama Masjid. The apex court also sought a status report on the matter from the government.
Sambhal mosque case stayed till February 25
The Allahabad high court earlier on Wednesday (January 8) put a stay on the trial court proceedings in the Sambhal Jama Masjid matter till February 25.
A bench of Justice Rohit Ranjan Agarwal passed the restraining order on a civil revision, filed by the managing committee of the Mughal-era mosque, against a Sambhal civil court’s November 19 order asking for a survey of the Muslim site by an advocate commissioner.
The Sambhal civil judge senior division had on November 19 ordered a hurried survey of the mosque after taking cognisance of an application by some Hindu activists. The activists had claimed that the Islamic religious site, built during the time of Mughal emperor Babur, was originally a prominent Hindu temple dedicated to the prophesied avatar of Vishnu, Kalki.
After conducting an initial survey of the mosque within a few hours of the court’s orders, the survey team led by advocate commissioner Ramesh Raghav reached the mosque for a second round of photography and videography on the morning of November 24.
However, things turned violent that day. At least four Muslim men were killed in the violence that broke out in the lanes near the Shahi Jama Masjid during a tense second survey of the mosque, which many local Muslims felt was unwarranted. The kin of those killed have accused the police of shooting them, a charge denied by the authorities. Several police personnel were also injured and some
The Yogi Adityanath-led Uttar Pradesh government on November 28 ordered a judicial probe by a three-member commission headed by Devendra Kumar Arora, a retired judge of the high court, to investigate the violence.
The advocate commissioner’s survey report of the Sambhal mosque, built during the time of Mughal emperor Babur, was submitted in the local court and has been kept in a sealed cover.
In their suit, the Hindu activists, led by senior lawyer Hari Shankar Jain, claimed that the Shahi Jama Masjid in Sambhal was a centuries-old Hari Har temple dedicated to Kalki and was being “used forcibly and unlawfully” by the Jama Masjid caretaking committee.
They said that the mosque was a monument protected under Section 3 (3) of the Ancient Monuments Preservation Act, 1904. They also claimed that they were being “denied access” to the mosque, described by them as “subject property,” as the ASI had not taken any steps for entry of the general public as mentioned in the provisions of Section 18 of the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains Act, 1958.