A day after SC order, Gyanvapi case files shifted to Varanasi district judge

VARANASI: In compliance with the Supreme Court’s Friday order to shift the Shringar Guri-Gyanvapi case from civil judge (senior division) to the district judge, all files related to the case were transferred to the Varanasi district judge here on Saturday.
District government counsel (civil) Mahendra Prasad Pandey told TOI that as per the SC order, all files have been transferred and now the hearing in this case would take place at the district judge court Ajay Kumar Vishwesh as per the initially fixed date of May 23. However, the points on which the hearing will take place would be made clear by the court only on Monday, he added.
The case pertains to a suit filed by five Hindu women seeking worship of the idol of Shringar Gauri situated on the outer wall of the Gyanvapi mosque, adjacent to the KVT Dham. Now three additional suits have been filed in the case. The first is by the Anjuman Intezamiya Masajid (AIM) which has raised objection to the civil judge's order to seal the wuzu pond of the Gyanvapi mosque after a shivling was purportedly found during a survey of the court-appointed commission. The second is from the five plaintiffs in the original plea seeking worship of the shivling found inside the Gyanvapi wuzu pond. The third petition is from the district government counsel, who has sought alternative arrangements of wuzu for the Gyanvapi namazis.
Hearing the plea of the AIM on Friday, the SC had transferred the case to the district judge from the civil judge (senior division) court which had ordered forming a court commission to conduct videography and survey of the mosque.
The SC bench of Justice DY Chandrachud, Justice Surya Kant and Justice PS Narashima had said that the district judge would decide on priority the mosque management committee’s plea that the suit is “not maintainable” as it defies the Protection of Places of Worship Act, 1991.
The SC had also made it clear that its May 17 interim order on the protection of the mosque area where a ‘shivling’ was found and free access to Muslims for namaz prayers should remain in force for eight weeks after the district judge decides on the matter.
The top court had also taken note of the leak of a report on the videographic survey of the mosque and said, “Only the trial court judge can open the report and information should not be leaked to the media.”
The 19-page report was submitted before the civil judge (senior division) court by the special advocate commissioner Vishal Singh here on May 19.
Meanwhile, Varanasi commissioner of police A Satish Ganesh held a meeting with the Anjuman Intejamia Masajid (AIM) office- bearers, including its secretary Maulana Abdul Batin Nomani and joint secretary SM Yasin, in which he praised their cooperation and efforts for maintaining peace during the Friday namaz.
The CP also sought details of the Muslim festivals, fairs and other events falling in near future. He appealed to them to sensitise people of the community not to get misled by rumours and cooperate in maintaining peace and law and order.