Allahabad High Court allows survey at Shrikrushna’s birth place, Mathura’s Eidgah mosque site

Hindus had made the demand

Prayagraj (UP) – The Allahabad High Court ordered a survey of the Shahi Eidgah mosque abutting the Krishna Janmabhoomi Temple in Mathura. The High Court agreed to appoint an advocate-commissioner to oversee the survey of the mosque. The next hearing will be on 18 ^th December. All the details regarding who will participate, how many people would be permitted to conduct the survey, in how many days will they complete the survey, etc. will be decided. The Hindu side had petitioned the Court three years ago demanding a survey of the Shahi Eidgah mosque. Hindu side’s Advocate Vishnu Shankar Jain informed that the Court gave the above order.

1.The High Court had reserved its decision on the application in this regard after hearing on 16 ^th November. A total of 17 out of 18 petitions were heard regarding this place. All these petitions were transferred from Mathura District Court to Allahabad High Court for hearing. One of these petitions has been sent to the ‘Court Commissioner’.

2.Justice Mayank Jain of the Allahabad High Court heard the 17 petitions one after the other. In one of these petitions, one of the parties, bringing forward the mythological aspect of the temple, said that the temple of Mathura was built by the grandson of Shrikrushna. He donated land for the temple. Therefore, there is no dispute over the ownership of the land.There is a controversy of demolishing the temple and build the Shahi Eidgah Mosque. In the revenue records, the land is still recorded as ‘Dham of Keshav Dev’.

3.In this case, the Muslim side objected and argued that the petition was improper. Advocates of Shahi Eidgah Masjid and ‘Uttar Pradesh Central Waqf Board’ filed an objection in the Court. He said that this petition is not fit for hearing and should be dismissed.

A compromise was reached in 1968

The religious dispute simmered in the first half of the 20^th century but a 1968 agreement calmed tempers. On 12^th October 1968, an agreement was signed between the ‘Shri Krishna Janmasthan Seva Sansthan’ and the Shahi Masjid Eidgah Trust. As per that agreement 2.37 acres of land out of an estimated 13.37 acres of land was allotted for the Shahi Eidgah. But after this agreement the ‘Shrikrishna Janmabhoomi Seva Sangh’ was dissolved. Hindu side’s petition challenged the settlement and alleged that the pact had no legal validity because the Shri Krishna Janmabhoomi Trust, which the petitioners claimed had the ownership and title of the land, was not party to the settlement.