Ajmer Sharif survey petition triggers demands for protection of Adhai Din Ka Jhonpra

    Ajmer, Dec 3 (PTI) A recent petition in an Ajmer court seeking a survey of the Ajmer Sharif dargah has triggered demand for restoration of the 12th century mosque Adhai Din Ka Jhonpra here to its original pre-Islamic heritage.
    Located a few minutes away from the dargah, this Archaeological Survey of India (ASI)-protected site has become a focal point for discussions about its historical identity.
    Ajmer Deputy Mayor Neeraj Jain has reiterated claims that the structure originally served as a Sanskrit college and temple before being demolished by invaders.
    "There is clear evidence that a Sanskrit college and temple existed at the place of the Jhonpra. The ASI has declared it a protected monument. Illegal activities are going on and parking has been encroached. We want the activities to stop," Jain told PTI.
    He said the ASI should bring out the idols kept inside the jhonpra and set up a museum. No survey is required for it.
    Jain claimed Nalanda and Takshila were targeted as part of a broader attack on Indian culture, education, and civilization.
    He also alleged that the ASI holds over 250 idols from the site and pointed to the presence of swastikas, bells, and Sanskrit inscriptions as proof of its pre-Islamic history.
    "Before Covid, we had demanded that the activities at the protected site be stopped and restore the site's original heritage. But, it got shelved due to the pandemic," Jain added.
    According to the ASI website, Adhai Din Ka Jhonpra is a masjid built by Qutub-ud-Din-Aibak, first Sultan of Delhi, in AD 1199 contemporary to the other one built at Qutub Minar complex of Delhi known as Quwal-ul-Islam mosque.
    However, a large number of sculptures of temples are lying inside the verandah of the complex for safety and security purposes by the department which shows the existence of a Hindu temple in its vicinity during circa 11th-12th Century AD.
    This mosque, built from the dismantled remains of temples, is known as Adhai din ka Jhonpra possibly from the fact that a fair used to be held here for two and a half days.
    Assembly Speaker Vasudev Devnani told PTI that Adhai Din Ka Jhonpra has always been imprinted in the public mind as a Sanskrit school.
    "People of Ajmer know what importance it had in the form of education in ancient times in Sanatan culture. How it was captured and became Adhai Din Ka Jhonpra from a school is a matter of research," he said.
    A Jain monk claimed the monument was formerly a Sanskrit school and a Jain temple existed before the school.
    "We have in the past demanded that the monument should be redeveloped and its past glory should be restored. There are idols in the monument which are kept in a store room," Sunil Sagar Maharaj said.
    In May, a group of Jain monks accompanied by VHP leaders had gone to the Adhai Din Ka Jhonpra. The monks led by Sunil Sagar Maharaj reached the monument from Fawara Circle via Dargah Bazaar.
    Later, an audio message of Sarwar Chisti, Secretary of Anjuman of Ajmer dargah, surfaced on social media in which he said he had registered his protest with police while objecting to Jain monks' visit to the monument, in which there is also a mosque, without clothes.
    On November 27, a civil court in Ajmer issued notices to the Ajmer Dargah committee, the Union Ministry of Minority Affairs and the ASI after a petition was filed by Vishnu Gupta, national president of Hindu Sena, claiming that the dargah was originally a Shiva temple.

(This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from PTI)