The suit says Parliament cannot legalise the illegal action of an invader which infringes the religious rights of Hindus guaranteed under Article 25 of the Constitution of India. The plea said Parliament also cannot restrain Hindu devotees from getting back their religious places of worship through the judicial process. – Harish V. Nair
A court in Varanasi has issued notices on a civil suit filed by devotees of Lord Shiva seeking removal of the Gyanvapi Mosque built by Aurangzeb in 1669 adjacent to the Kashi Vishwanath Temple by allegedly demolishing an ancient temple.
The notice has been sent to the Centre, UP government, Varanasi District Magistrate, Senior Superintendent of Police, Varanasi, UP Muslim Personal Law Board, mosque management Anjuman Intazamia, board of trustees of Kashi Vishwanath Temple. The replies have been sought by April 9, the next date of hearing.
The suit also sought a “decree in the nature of declaration declaring that the worshippers of Maa Goddess Shringar Gauri, Goddess Maa Ganga, Lord Hanuman, Lord Ganeshji, Nandiji along with Lord Adi Visheshwar are entitled to have Darshan, Pooja and Worship of deities within the area of Settlement Plot No. 9130 (Nine Thousand One Hundred Thirty) situated at Dashashwamedh in the heart of City of Varanasi.”
This is the second petition in recent times which has raised the demand. Earlier the court had sought response of the mosque management on a civil suit filed by devotees and worshippers as the “next friend” of the deities.
“The building in question contains the image of Swayambhu deity Goddess Shringar Gauri and images of a number of God and Goddess, a number of an object of worship and Hindu religious facets within the structure from the time immemorial. The religious character of the building complex as a Hindu place of worship is continuing till date despite the construction illegally raised by Muslims,” says the suit filed by Shiva devotees Satyam Tripathi, Ashish Kumar Shukla, Pawan Kumar Pathak through advocates Hari Shankar Jain and Vishnu Shankar Jain.
The suit also urged the court to pass a decree in the nature of the declaration declaring that the entire Avimukteshwar area belongs to plaintiff deity Asthan Lord Adi Visheshwar.
The civil suit says: “the plaintiffs are followers of Sanatan Vedic Dharma. They are idol worshippers. They are worshippers of Lord of Universe Lord Shiva.”
It says, “as described in various scriptures and Skand Puran, the Jyotirlinga was established by Lord Shiva himself at Kashi creating Avimukteshwara Kshetra.
“That as described in various scriptures and Skanda Puran, the Jyotirlinga was established by Lord Shiva himself at Kashi creating Avimukteshwara Kshetra in the radius of 5 (Five) Kos (Krosh).”
The suit says Parliament cannot legalise the illegal action of invader which infringes the religious rights of Hindus guaranteed under Article 25 of the Constitution of India. The plea said Parliament also cannot restrain Hindu devotees from getting back their religious places of worship through the judicial process.
Parliament cannot make any law which takes away or abridges the vested religious right of devotees and cannot make any law with retrospective effect, it said adding Parliament having no power or jurisdiction has barred right and remedy of Hindus against encroachment made on their religious places exercising might of power by followers of another faith. – TimesNowNews, 11 March 2021
› Harish V. Nair is a senior editor (legal) at Times Now TV. He has specialised in coverage of Supreme Court and issues pertaining to judiciary.
Filed under: india | Tagged: avimukteshwar area, gyanvapi mosque, kashi vishwanath temple, vishwanath |
BHARATA BHARATI 
Kashi, Mathura re-bid? SC notice to Centre on PIL challenging validity of places of worship act – Harish V. Nair – TimesNowNews – 12 March 2021
In a very significant development, the Supreme Court on Friday issued notice to the Centre, on a Public Interest Litigation which challenged the validity of Places of Worship Act 1991 that had provided for maintaining the status quo of religious structures as it existed on August 15, 1947.
The Act had in fact barred litigation on any place of worship for change of its character as existed in 1947, except the Babri Masjid-Ram Janmabhoomi case which was decided in November 2019 by a five-judge bench led by then Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi who ruled in favour of the Hindu side and cleared the decks for the construction of the Ram Mandir at Ayodhya. The masjid side was given an alternate 5-acre plot.
Petitioner Ashwini Upadhyay, who is an SC advocate and a Delhi BJP leader argues that the Act takes away the rights of Hindus, Jains, Buddhists and Sikhs to reclaim their places of worship through Courts and legalises illegal acts of invaders
The suit says that the Parliament cannot legalise the illegal action of invader which infringes the religious rights of Hindus guaranteed under Article 25 of the Constitution of India
The plea said that the parliament also cannot restrain Hindu devotees from getting back their religious places of worship through the judicial process.
FROM THE PETITION
“Keeping in view the above historical facts, international conventions legal provisions and right of Hindus Jains Buddhists Sikhs to restore their religious places by process of law and sentiments attached with ancient places of pilgrimage, the Hon’ble Court may be pleased to issue appropriate writ, order(s) or direction(s) to respondents to: direct and declare that Section 2 of the Places of Worship (Special Provisions) Act, 1991 is void and unconstitutional for being violative of Articles 14,15,21,25,26,29 of the Constitution, in so far as it seeks to validate ‘places of worship’, illegally made by barbaric invaders. Centre enacted the impugned Act to impose injunction on rights of Hindus Jains Sikhs Buddhists to reclaim their place of worship and pilgrimage,” said the petition.
STAND OF JAMIAT ULEMA-I-HIND
The notice on the PIL filed by Upadhyaya comes at a time when the Jamiat Ulema-I- Hind in an earlier petition filed by Advocates Hari Shankar Jain and Vishnu Shankar Jain on behalf of Hindu priests organisation Vishwa Bhadra Pujari Purohit Mahasangh challenging the constitutional validity of the Places of Worship Act (which is still pending and notice not issued) filed an impleadment application urging the SC to not even issue a notice in the petition challenging Places Of Worship Act saying:
— It will create fear in the minds of the Muslim community still recovering from the aftermath of the Ayodhya verdict.
— It will open floodgates of litigation against countless mosques in the country.
The SC notice also comes at a time when petitions have already been filed (in Mathura court) seeking removal of the mosque near Krishna Janmabhoomi Temple and in Varanasi court for the demolition of Gyanwapi Mosque near the Kashi Viswanath Temple. Civil courts have already issued notices to the respective mosque managements. Hari Shankar Jain and Vishnu Shankar Jain are key petitioners in the civil suits filed in Mathura and Varanasi courts seeking “liberation of Kashi and Mathura” too after the SC verdict in the Ayodhya case.
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