Allahabad High Court: Hindu Prayers Will Continue In Gyanvapi Cellar; Rejects Petition

The Allahabad High Court has dismissed the petition filed by the Anjuman Intezamia Masjid Committee, challenging the Varanasi district court’s decision to allow Hindu devotees to offer prayers in the southern cellar of the Gyanvapi mosque, known as the ‘Vyas Tehkhana’.

On January 31, the Varanasi district court had ruled in a favour of the Hindu side, granting them permission to conduct prayers in the southern cellar of the Gyanvapi mosque called ‘Vyas Tehkhana’. The court further directed the district magistrate to prepare the arrangements for ‘puja’ and appoint a ‘pujari’ nominated by the Shri Kashi Vishwanath Temple Trust.

The order was delivered following a petition filed by Shailendra Kumar Pathak who claimed his maternal grandfather, Somnath Vyas, had offered prayers within the mosque premises till December 1993. As a hereditary pujari, Pathak had requested to be allowed to enter the designated area of the mosque and resume pujas.

However, the Masjid committee challenged this decision before the Allahabad High Court on February 1, following the Supreme Court’s refusal to hear the committee’s plea. Notably, the mosque premises consists of four ‘tehkhanas’ or cellars in the basement, with one still under the possession of the Vyas family, who used to reside there.

The ruling comes after a long-standing debate between the Hindu and Muslim sides regarding the ownership and usage of the mosque premises.

The Hindu side contends that religious ceremonies were conducted in the cellar until 1993 by the Vyas family but had to comply following a directive from the state government, leading to the discontinuation of such practices.

On the other hand, the Anjuman Intezamia Masjid Committee, which manages the mosque, argues that the ‘Vyas Tehkhana’ falls within the jurisdiction of the mosque premises and claims that neither the Vyas family nor any other entity has the right to perform worship activities within it. The committee also claims that no idols existed in the cellar, refuting assertions of prayers being offered till 1993.

On February 15, the Allahabad High Court had reserved its order after hearing both sides.

Previously, All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) president, Asaduddin Owaisi condemned the Varanasi court’s decision as a violation of the Places of Worship Act.

According to a report by the Archaelogical Survey of India (ASI), ordered by the district court, had earlier suggested that the Gyanvapi mosque was built during Aurangzeb’s rule over the remnants of a Hindu temple.