New Delhi: After seeking Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) survey of Mughal-era mosque in Sambhal, Uttar Pradesh, where five Muslim men were shot dead by state police during protests, a Hindu right-wing group Hindu Sena has now sought a survey of historic Jama Masjid in Delhi.
The National president of the hindutva group, Vishnu Gupta has formally written to the director general of ASI requesting a thorough survey. He alleges that the mosque was built upon the remains of temples from Jodhpur and Udaipur, destroyed by Mughal emperor Aurangzeb.
According to the letter, idols of Hindu deities were allegedly used in the construction of the Jama Masjid, with some buried beneath the mosque’s stairs to dishonour Hindu religious sentiments.
Gupta urged ASI to investigate the site arguing that the truth behind the construction of Jama Masjid should be uncovered. He claimed that historical evidence supports the theory that Aurangzeb’s actions were aimed at humiliating Hindus and the current structure may conceal traces of the temples that once stood there.
Jama Masjid, also known as Masjid-i Jehan-Numa, is one of the largest mosques in India. It was built by the Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan between 1644 and 1656 and is considered one of the finest examples of Mughal architecture. The mosque is constructed primarily of red sandstone with white marble accents and features three large gates, three domes, four towers, and two minarets.
The request comes amid ongoing debates regarding other significant places of worship in India where temples are claimed to have been replaced by mosques.
The Places of Worship (Special Provisions) Act, 1991 seeks to maintain communal harmony by freezing the religious character of places of worship as they existed on August 15, 1947, thereby preventing disputes over such conversions.
Recently, a lawsuit was filed last month by the Hindu Sena seeking a survey of the site of the Ajmer Dargah Sharif of Khwaja Mu’in al-din Chishti, one of the epicentres of sufism in South Asia and one of the symbols of the spiritual convergence between religious communities in India. For centuries Hindu and Muslim pilgrims have prayed together in this shrine.
The lawsuit argues that this mausoleum and pilgrimage site had been built over a Shiva temple, that was there before the 13th-century shrine.
On November 24, five Muslim youth were killed in Sambhal Uttar Pradesh when state police personnel opened fire on locals protesting a survey of the Shahi Jama Masjid.
The deaths were confirmed by CO Anuj Chaudhary, according to multiple news reports. The clashes began when a team entered the mosque for a second survey around 7am, accompanied by members of a Hindutva group. A video from the incident allegedly shows the survey team and the group chanting slogans.
The survey stems from a petition filed by senior advocate Vishnu Shanker Jain, alleging that the historic 16th-century mosque was built after demolishing a temple during the Mughal era. Hindutva groups accompanied the survey team, which was overseen by Advocate Commissioner Ramesh Raghav, the District Magistrate, and the Superintendent of Police.
The mosque, built under the direction of Emperor Babar, is recognised as a historic monument on the Sambhal district’s official website. The first survey was conducted on November 19.
