Chief Justice of India N.V. Ramana on Monday agreed to list on July 21 a petition seeking darshan and pooja of the shivling reportedly found on the Gyanvapi mosque premises during a survey.
In an oral mentioning, advocate Vishnu Shankar Jain urged the CJI to list the plea along with another petition filed by the caretakers of the Gyanvapi mosque, Anjuman Intejamia Masjid, which has challenged a lower court order to conduct a survey of the premises.
“This is a petition to allow darshan and pooja of the ‘shivling’ which has been found in the complex and also to direct the Archaeological Survey of India to do carbon dating. The petition filed by masjid committee challenging the commission survey is coming up on July 21. Please list this petition along with that,” Mr. Jain submitted.
The case is pending before a Bench led by Justice D.Y. Chandrachud.
On May 20, the Justice Chandrachud Bench had said its interim order on May 17 to protect the area where the shivling was reportedly found would continue while Muslims would be able to offer namaaz in the mosque.
The court had ordered the District Magistrate to make appropriate arrangements, if not already made, for Muslims to offer wazu khana before namaaz at the mosque.
The Supreme Court had also transferred the Gyanvapi Masjid suit proceedings from a civil judge to the District Judge of Varanasi, saying the social complexities of the dispute required a “more senior and experienced judicial officer”.
The Justice Chandrachud Bench had further, on May 20, directed the District Judge to hear on priority a challenge moved by the mosque’s caretakers against a suit filed last year by five Hindu women who want untrammeled rights to worship Maa Shringar Gauri, Lord Ganesh, Lord Hanuman and other “visible and invisible deities” within the mosque premises. The Anjuman has argued that the suit is barred in law.
