Bareilly: The advocate commissioner appointed to survey the Mughal-era Shahi Jama Masjid in Sambhal submitted a 45-page report in a sealed envelope to a local court in Chandausi on Thursday. Hearing a petition filed by eight persons, including lawyer Harishankar Jain and his son Vishnushankar Jain, the court had ordered the survey on Nov 19 “to ascertain if the mosque was built on the site of the Shri Harihar temple by Mughal emperor Babur in 1529”.
The petition had referenced Baburnama, Ain-i-Akbari, and a 150-year-old report by Archaeological Survey of India (ASI). The Hindu side, led by head priest Rishi Raj Giri, maintains that the mosque is the site where “Lord Vishnu’s Kalki avatar will appear”. The survey was conducted at the mosque in Sambhal’s Kot Purvi locality on Nov 19 and 24, when clashes erupted as protestors opposed the ASI team from inspecting the mosque, resulting in large-scale violence that saw five deaths.
The report, presented by court-appointed advocate commissioner Ramesh Singh Raghav, includes over 1,000 photographs and architectural findings, such as lotus motifs on pillars and a carved urn in the mosque. Raghav said, “We have submitted the report in the court of Aditya Singh. The contents of the report will not be made public until the Supreme Court issues an order.”
The Supreme Court had recently directed a halt to the registration of new suits and orders concerning survey of religious sites under the Places of Worship (Special Provisions) Act, 1991. The directive emphasised on maintaining the religious character of places of worship as of Aug 15, 1947, and prevents interim or final orders in ongoing cases.
The Sambhal case adds to ongoing disputes over other historical sites, such as the Taj Mahal, where some groups claim it was originally a Hindu temple; the Gyanvapi mosque in Varanasi, currently under legal scrutiny to determine if it was built over a Hindu temple; the Shahi Idgah mosque in Mathura, contested by Hindu groups asserting it stands on Lord Krishna’s birthplace; and the Bhojshala-Kamal Maula complex in Dhar, Madhya Pradesh, where both Hindu and Muslim communities claim rights, leading to court-ordered surveys to ascertain its origins.
