On February 6, a district court in Uttar Pradesh accepted a petition to remove the Shahi Idgah Mosque of Mathura that was built by Aurangzeb by encroaching land of Shri Krishna Janmbhoomi in Mathura. As per the reports, the court has issued a notice to all parties, including Shahi Idgah Mosque Management Committee, to submit their views. A hearing will join soon after all parties join the case.
As per the report published in Aaj Tak, Sanjay Gaur, District Government Advocate, Mathura, said that Additional District and Sessions judge Devkant Shukla has issued notice to all parties and accepted the petition hearing. The court noted that the suit is permissible and it will have a detailed hearing on the case. The parties have been asked to present their case on March 8, 2021.
Three demands in the petition
Pawan Kumar Shastri filed the petition on behalf of Thakur Keshav Dev Ji Maharaj Virajman, the old Keshavdev temple’s deity. The notice has been issued to the chairman of Uttar Pradesh Sunni Central Waqf Board, secretary of Shahi Idgah Management Committee, managing trustee of Sri Krishna Janmabhoomi Trust and secretary of Sri Krishna Janmasthan Seva Sansthan. There are three requests made in the petition:
The petition has claimed the entire 13.7 acres of Katra Keshav Dev Temple complex, including the land of the royal Idgah Mosque. It has asked for the right to manage the entire temple complex. He has claimed that his ancestors have been serving God as a priest for decades. Claiming to be a real serviceman of the temple, the petitioner has presented himself as the right person to manage the temple.
Shastri sought dismissal of the 1967 judgment that approved the agreement between Sri Krishna Janmasthana Seva Sansthan and Shahi Idgah Management Committee that had allowed the mosque to stay close to the temple. He has petitioned the court to direct the Lucknow-based Sunni Waqf Board president and Shahi Idgah Management Committee to remove the mosque from its existing location.
Similar application was filed in October 2020
A similar application was filed on October 12 in the court of District Judge Mathura Sadhni Rani Thakur, where the petitioners had claimed that Shahi Idgah was built in the 17th century on the premises of the 13-acre Katra Keshava Dev Temple of Sri Krishna Janmabhoomi. The petitioners further alleged that there was a temple of Krishna at that spot which the Mughals broke down and built the mosque.
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