The Supreme Court on Friday refused to stay the Allahabad High Court's decision to allow a survey of the Shahi Masjid Idgah adjoining the Krishna Janmabhoomi temple, in Mathura.
The Allahabad High Court, on Thursday, had allowed a court-monitored survey of the mosque premises. The court agreed to the appointment of an advocate commissioner to oversee the survey, which the petitioners claim holds signs suggesting that it was a Hindu temple once. Justice Mayank Kumar Jain has said the modalities of the survey will be discussed at the next hearing on December 18.
The order on the Krishna Janmabhoomi-Shahi Idgah issue is the second temple-mosque dispute in which the high court has given its nod to a survey. The Archeological Survey of India (ASI) recently completed a survey of the Gyanvapi mosque next to Varanasi's Kashi Vishwanath temple, but has sought more time to submit its report.
Reacting to the HC order, the Shahi Idgah Masjid Management Committee had said it will challenge it in the Supreme Court.