The Controversial Shahi Jama Masjid in Uttar Pradesh's Sambhal District (image-LinkedIn/DiveDevise)

Uttar Pradesh’s Sambhal district has been rocked by violence after clashes broke out during a court-mandated survey of the Shahi Jama Masjid. At least six people have died and several others injured. In a delicate time like this, where uninformed or misinformed opinions and tweets are enough for a communal flareup, CNN-News 18 anchor Rahul Shivshankar claimed that the Shahi Jama Masjid is not covered by the Places of Worship Act, 1991, apparently because it is an ASI-protected monument.

Taking to X (formerly Twitter), Shivshankar shared a Times of India editorial criticising the district court’s order on mandating the survey that triggered the violence in Sambhal. “This editorial, critical of the court order on conducting a survey, displays an astounding level of factual ignorance and confirmation bias rolled into one,” he remarked before explaining why the PoW Act doesn’t apply to Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) protected monuments such as the Shahi Jama Masjid.

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The PoW Act does mention in Section (4) sub-section (3) that “nothing contained in sub-section (1) and sub-section (2) shall apply to, (a) any place of worship referred to in the said sub-sections which is an ancient and historical monument, or archaeological site remains covered by the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains (AMASR) Act, 1958 (24 of 1958) or any other law for the time being in force;…”

Which essentially means that if the place of worship is an ancient or historical monument covered by the AMASR Act, then the PoW Act is not applicable to it.

However, perhaps before tweeting and quoting the particular subsection of the PoW Act, if the news anchor had researched a bit more, he would have found that Section 16 of the AMASR Act provides that a protected monument, which is a place of worship, cannot be used for any purpose inconsistent with its character.

This implies that if a protected monument is a mosque, then it cannot be used as a temple because it would be inconsistent with its character.

“A protected monument maintained by the Central Government under this Act which is a place of worship or shrine shall not be used for any purpose inconsistent with its character,” states the Act.

The Shahi Jama Mosque in Sambhal district is reportedly notified as a “protected monument” under the Ancient Monuments Preservation Act of 1904 (which was later replaced by the AMASR Act) and recognised by the ASI as a “Monument of National Importance.”

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The news anchor’s tweet is nothing short of an astounding level of factual ignorance and confirmation bias rolled into one.

The unrest began on November 24 when locals resisted an ASI team, accompanied by members of Hindutva groups, chanting slogans like ‘Jai Shree Ram,’ investigating claims of a Hindu temple beneath the Shahi Jama Masjid. The court-mandated survey disregarded the Places of Worship Act (1991), which preserves the status of religious sites as of 15 August 1947.