Prayagraj: The Allahabad High Court Friday reserved its judgment on the maintainability of cases related to the Krishna Janmasthan-Shahi Idgah dispute in Mathura.
Several cases have been filed seeking the “removal” of the Shahi Idgah masjid which stands adjacent to the Krishna temple, with litigants claiming that the Aurangazeb-era mosque was built after the demolition of the temple.
The Muslim side, however, argued that the suits are barred under the Places of Worship (Special Provisions) Act, 1991, and the Waqf Act.
The Act prohibits the conversion of any place of worship and aims to maintain the religious character of such places as it existed on August 15, 1947.
The case is being heard by Justice Mayank Kumar Jain.
Earlier on Thursday, appearing on behalf of the Muslim side, Taslima Aziz Ahmadi submitted before the court that the provisions of the Waqf Act will apply and it was the Waqf tribunal which has the jurisdiction to hear the matter.
She informed the court that the parties had entered a compromise on October 12, 1968, which was confirmed in a civil suit decided in 1974.
Ahmadi said the limitation to challenge a compromise is three years but the present suit was filed in 2020 and thus, is barred by the law of limitation.
The counsel appearing on behalf of the Hindu side opposed the arguments, saying the Places of Worship Act, 1991, applies only in cases of undisputed structures and not for disputed ones as in the present case.
In the present case, the character of the structure is yet to be decided, the counsel argued.
Earlier, it was also submitted that no documents regarding ownership of the property in dispute have been provided either by the Sunny Central Waqf Board or by the Intazamia committee of the Idgah who are the defendants in the suit.
PTI