The Supreme Court on Thursday agreed to set up a bench and hear the Gyanvapi mosque case on Friday, a day before the interim order to seal the area where a 'shivling' was claimed to be found, ends. The Hindu side had sought extension of the order which ensures protection of the particular area within the mosque premises.
A bench headed by Chief Justice D.Y. Chandrachud took note of the submissions of advocate Vishnu Shankar Jain, appearing for some Hindu devotees. We will constitute a bench at 3 pm tomorrow, the CJI said.
The mosque is located close to the iconic Kashi Vishwanath temple. In May, the SC had directed the district magistrate of Varanasi to ensure protection of the area inside the Gyanvapi complex where a 'shivling' is said to have been found during a survey and allowed Muslims to offer namaz and perform religious observances. The videography survey of the mosque complex was ordered by the Varanasi court in response to pleas by five Hindu women seeking permission to perform daily worship of deities Shringar Gauri, Lord Ganesha, Lord Hanuman and Nandi whose idols are located on the outer wall of the Gyanvapi mosque.
The survey was conducted over a few days, under tight security arrangements and prohibitory orders. The survey work was completed on May 16 and the report was presented in the court on May 19.
The mosque committee rejected 'shivling' claims and said that the structure was in fact a fountain. The Gyanvapi mosque management committee (Anjuman Intezamiya Masjid) said the mosque is a Waqf property and questioned the maintainability of the plea. On September 12, the Varanasi district court dismissed the Masjid committee's plea, and held the petition is maintainable.
In October, the Varanasi court also rejected a plea by the Hindu side for a scientific analysis of the structure. The court said scientific investigation, including carbon dating, would violate the apex court's order to seal the area—the order expires on November 12.