Wooden model of pre-1669 Gyanvapi complex being prepared as evidence in court, says plaintiff's lawyer

VARANASI: Vishnu Shankar Jain, the lawyer representing four of the five Hindu women plaintiffs in the case in which they are seeking regular worship of Shringar Gauri and other deities in Gyanvapi mosque compound, said that a wooden model is being prepared to show how a temple existed at the site before 1669 when it was demolished and converted into a mosque.
While addressing a function here on Wednesday, Jain said, “This model will be completed in a month and produced before court as an evidence. It is being prepared on the basis of historical facts to show how a temple existed on eight ‘mandaps’.”
“We are collecting facts.. a trust formed in the name of ‘Shriaadi Mahadev Kashi Dharmalaya Mukti Nyas’, is collecting facts and evidence related to Gyanvapi,” said Jain adding, “It is also expected that if a survey of Gyanvapi is conducted by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), more evidence regarding existence of the temple would come to light.. it would be beyond everyone's imagination.”
Earlier, plaintiff Laxmi Devi's hudband Sohan Lal Arya, who is an office-bearer of Kashi region unit of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad, said that “all evidence being produced in the court is based on detailed research”.
In his previous interaction with TOI on May 22, Arya had said that a veteran Shastri of a Vedic study centre had informed him about the ground realities of Gyanvapi.
“As per the facts collected by me,” Arya said, “A Nagar-style temple stood on eight mandaps of Ganesha, Aishvarya, Bhairav, Gyan, Tarkeshwar, Mukti, Dandapani and Shringar. When Aadi Visheshwar temple was attacked by the Mughal emperor Aurangzeb in 1669, he could destroy only Aishwarya and Mukti mandaps along with the sanctum sanctorum of the temple to build a mosque. The Ganesh, Shringar and Dandapani mandaps in the west and Bhairav, Gyan and Tarkeshwar mandaps could not be destroyed and their remains are still evident.”
During Wednesday’s function of ‘Shriaadi Mahadev Kashi Dharmalaya Mukti Nyas’, a member Ramprasad Singh said that a 200-page special writeup on Gyanvapi is being prepared to be released soon. Indian Industries Association’s national vice-president RK Chaudhary also addressed the function in which local industrialists felicitated Jain.