The court of Varanasi's senior-most judge is expected to decide today whether a case filed by five Hindu women seeking the right to worship inside the city's Gyanvapi mosque, located next to the famous Kashi Viswanath temple, is "maintainable" or not. District judge AK Vishvesha is likely to pronounce orders on whether the case by the women -- that led to a survey inside the Gyanvapi mosque -- will continue to be heard or whether it will cease to have any legal standing.
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Security Strengthened In Varanasi Ahead Of Key Decision In Gyanvapi Case
Prohibitory orders have been clamped in the Varanasi commissionerate area and officers have been asked to interact with religious leaders in their respective areas to ensure that peace is maintained, according to Police Commissioner A Satish Ganesh. To maintain law and order, the entire city has been divided into sectors which have been allocated police force as required, he said, adding directives for flag march and foot march in sensitive areas have also been issued. Checking has been intensified in the district's border areas, hotels and guest houses, while an eye is being also kept on social media, the police officer said.
Prohibitory orders have been clamped in the Varanasi commissionerate area and officers have been asked to interact with religious leaders in their respective areas to ensure that peace is maintained, according to Police Commissioner A Satish Ganesh. To maintain law and order, the entire city has been divided into sectors which have been allocated police force as required, he said, adding directives for flag march and foot march in sensitive areas have also been issued. Checking has been intensified in the district's border areas, hotels and guest houses, while an eye is being also kept on social media, the police officer said.
Carbon Dating To Be Next Demand, Says Advocate Representing Hindu Women
Advocate Vishnu Shanker Jain, representing the five Hindu women who filed the case pertaining to the Gyanvapi mosque, hopes the Supreme Court rules in their favour. The Places Of Worship Act, 1991 was cited by mosque committee and we put our arguments in the court scientifically, he said. We are saying that Vyas ji was being worshiped in the basement of the Gyanvapi mosque till 1993, Mr Jain contended, adding that their case is "very strong". If we win the case today, we will demand carbon dating to be done by conducting further survey of the pond used for "Wazoo", he said.
Advocate Vishnu Shanker Jain, representing the five Hindu women who filed the case pertaining to the Gyanvapi mosque, hopes the Supreme Court rules in their favour. The Places Of Worship Act, 1991 was cited by mosque committee and we put our arguments in the court scientifically, he said. We are saying that Vyas ji was being worshiped in the basement of the Gyanvapi mosque till 1993, Mr Jain contended, adding that their case is "very strong". If we win the case today, we will demand carbon dating to be done by conducting further survey of the pond used for "Wazoo", he said.
Gyanvapi Mosque Case: A Quick Rewind
In May, the Supreme Court assigned the Gyanvapi case to the Varanasi district judge's court, shifting it from a lower court where it was being heard till then. A month before the Supreme Court's intervention in the case, the Varanasi civil court had ordered the filming of the Gyanvapi mosque, based on the petition by the Hindu women who claim there are idols of Hindu Gods and goddesses in the Gyanvapi mosque complex.
In May, the Supreme Court assigned the Gyanvapi case to the Varanasi district judge's court, shifting it from a lower court where it was being heard till then. A month before the Supreme Court's intervention in the case, the Varanasi civil court had ordered the filming of the Gyanvapi mosque, based on the petition by the Hindu women who claim there are idols of Hindu Gods and goddesses in the Gyanvapi mosque complex.
A report of the filming at the mosque was then submitted to the Varanasi court in a sealed cover, but the Hindu petitioners controversially released details just hours later. The report claimed a "Shivling" had been found in a pond within the mosque complex used for "Wazoo" or purification rituals before Muslim prayers. The judge hearing the case at the time had ordered the sealing of this pond.
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