Himachal Pradesh Court Cracks Down on Illegal Sanjauli Mosque’s Construction.

The Effect of Strong Hindu Protest…

Mosque Demolition Ordered: Shimla Court Directs Removal of 3 Unauthorized Floors at Sanjauli Mosque within 2 Months.

The Shimla court has ordered the Sanjauli Mosque Committee to demolish the unauthorized three stories within two months at their own expense.

Upendra Bharti | HENB | New Delhi | Oct 6, 2024:: A court in Himachal Pradesh’s Shimla has ordered the demolition of three floors of the disputed Sanjauli Mosque, giving the mosque’s committee two months to complete the demolition at their own expense. This decision comes after the mosque was deemed illegal, sparking protests from various Hindu organizations.

The court has rejected a plea by local residents to intervene in the ongoing mosque dispute, while ordering the mosque committee to bear the costs of demolishing the structure that exceeds the permissible limit. According to Advocate BS Thakur, representing the Muslim Waqf Board, the court accepted the mosque committee’s proposal to demolish the excess structure adjacent to the mosque. The committee has been granted two months to complete the demolition at their own expense.

Thakur clarified that this decision is interim, and the final verdict is pending. The next hearing is scheduled for December 21. This development highlights the ongoing tensions surrounding the mosque’s construction and the court’s efforts to resolve the dispute.

Tensions surrounding the Sanjauli Mosque in Shimla have been escalating since September 2, when thousands of people protested against the allegedly illegal construction of the mosque, calling for its immediate demolition. Fast forward to September 11, a protest demanding the demolition of part of the mosque turned violent, leaving ten people injured. The situation didn’t calm down as similar protests broke out in Mandi just two days later, prompting authorities to use water cannons to disperse the crowd.

The protests in both Sanjauli and Mandi shared a common demand: the demolition of the mosque’s illegally constructed portions. This growing pressure has put local officials in a tough spot, urging them to take swift action to address the issue.

Waqf Board failed to provide documents

In fact, advocate BS Thakur said that the mosque committee has said that it will consider further steps after the full order comes. He said that further decision will be taken about the remaining structure. The Waqf Board had earlier justified the construction of the mosque. The board said that the rules were properly followed in the construction of the mosque, but later failed to provide documents regarding its claim.

Notice was issued in 2011

Local residents had demanded the demolition of the mosque. The municipal corporation first issued a notice in 2011, but by 2018, the mosque was constructed up to five floors without any proper documentation and following the rules. Hindu organizations opposed this mosque and called it illegal. The issue also reached the Himachal Pradesh Assembly, where Rural Development Minister Anirudh Singh supported the demolition, and Chief Minister Sukhwinder Singh Sukhu stressed that all residents of the state deserve equal respect without any discrimination.

Demand to demolish it calling it illegal

Let us tell you that the whole matter happened when an incident came to light from Malyana area of ​​​​Shimla, where a Hindu man was allegedly attacked by six persons. The seriously injured victims lodged a complaint with the police. It was claimed that the attackers had taken refuge in a nearby mosque. After this, many Hindu organizations protested and demanded the demolition of the mosque calling it illegal.

On the other hand, the Waqf Board, however, claimed that it has all the papers of the land where the mosque was built. At present, after the instructions of the Commissioner, the Chairman of the Mosque Committee, Muhammad Latif said that we had offered to demolish the unauthorized floors of the mosque on September 12 and we have no objection to the order. We are ready to demolish the unauthorized floors.

Waqf Board lawyer BS Thakur said that the court accepted the memorandum of the committee to demolish the ‘unauthorized’ part of the mosque and rejected the petition of the local citizens to become a third party in the case.
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__Inputs from Zee News and India Today.