By Arun Pratap Singh
Nainital, 27 Nov: The Uttarakhand High Court today heard the petition filed in the case of dispute over the Sunni community’s mosque located at Bhatwari Road in Uttarkashi. After hearing the case, the division bench comprising Acting Chief Justice Manoj Kumar Tiwari and Justice Vivek Bharti Sharma has fixed the next hearing on 5 December. Meanwhile, the court has asked the District Magistrate of Uttarkashi and the Superintendent of Police to maintain law and order, as well as to keep the court informed in this regard.
At the hearing, the petitioner stated that a Mahapanchayat is planned against the mosque on 1 December by various Hindu organisations and pleaded that this should not be allowed. In response, the state government indicated that the administration has not given any permission for the Mahapanchayat. Currently, the police are patrolling day and night to maintain law and order, and the situation is normal. The Alpsankhyak Seva Samiti of Uttarkashi has filed a petition claiming that, since 24 September, some organisations have been threatening to demolish the Sunni community’s mosque at Bhatwari Road, calling it illegal and that this has created tension between the two communities.
The petitioners have requested that the state government be ordered to protect the mosque. The petition further stated that this mosque is valid, having been built on purchased land in 1969. In 1986, the Waqf Commissioner inspected it and found the mosque to be valid. Hindutva organisations had previously protested in Uttarkashi, calling the mosque building illegal, which led to police lathi charges. Subsequently, the government removed the Additional District Magistrate and the Deputy Superintendent of Police, and Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami ordered the re-examination of the mosque’s land documents.
It may be recalled that Hindu organisations have called for a Mahapanchayat on 1 December, demanding the mosque’s removal. Local Muslims approached the High Court regarding the mosque’s security, resulting in a police picket being set up for protection. According to administrative sources, all documents related to the Uttarkashi mosque submitted to the district administration by the Sunni Committees are photocopies. The administration has requested the original documents.
The Bhatwari SDM today stated that the administration will issue notices to all the parties concerned in order to reach a definite conclusion regarding the legality of the property and for this the administration will need to see the original documents.
The petitioners also claimed that despite a standing order of the Supreme Court to register cases directly if inflammatory statements are made against any caste, religion, or community, the state government has failed to do so.
Meanwhile, Hindu organisations are holding meetings to organise the Mahapanchayat. Memorandums have been sent to the district administration from the tehsil level, indicating that a large number of the Hindu community will gather in Uttarkashi on 1 December. The hearing in the mosque security case, initially scheduled for today, has been postponed to 5 December.
