The High Court has rejected the Masjid Committee’s challenge. The Allahabad High Court said that Gyanvapi compound could have either a Muslim character or a Hindu character and directed the trial court “to decide the suit in 6 months expeditiously”. Further, the HC has allowed ASI to continue the survey of the mosque.
“If the lower court feels that a survey of any part is necessary, the court may direct ASI to conduct the survey,” the Allahabad High Court observed. The Anjuman Intezamia Masajid Committee (AIMC), which looks after the management of Gyanvapi mosque located adjacent to Kashi Vishwanath temple at Varanasi, has challenged the maintainability of a suit filed before a Varanasi court, wherein the Hindu petitioners have sought restoration of a temple at the site where the Gyanvapi mosque presently exists. The Places of Worship (Special Provisions) Act, 1991 does not preclude the lawsuits, according to the bench of Justice Rohit Ranjan Agarwal.
Additionally, the court ordered the lower court to quickly consider the lawsuit within six months. It further stated that the lower court may order ASI to survey if it determines that one is required for any portion.
On December 8, the one-judge panel set aside the current decision. Chief Justice Pritinker Diwaker, who is now retired, was supervising the proceedings before Justice Agarwal and had decided to revisit the case, which had first been before Justice Prakash Padia.
In a lawsuit filed before a Varanasi court, Hindu petitioners sought the restoration of a temple at the location where the Gyanvapi mosque currently stands. The suit was challenged by the Anjuman Intezamia Masajid Committee (AIMC), which oversees the management of the Gyanvapi mosque, which is located next to the Kashi Vishwanath temple in Varanasi.
The Gyanvapi mosque is a component of the temple, according to the complainant from the Hindu side. The mosque management committee petitioned the Supreme Court to suspend the ASI survey until July 26, 5:00 p.m., in defiance of the lower court’s ruling. This allowed the mosque side some breathing room to submit an appeal or revision, with the high court challenging the decision made by the local court. Ultimately, on August 3, 2023, Chief Justice Pritinker Diwaker’s High Court panel approved the ASI survey of the Gyanvapi grounds.
