The Supreme Court intervened to halt the implementation of a decision made by the Allahabad High Court in December 2023.
On Tuesday, the high court’s ruling directed the appointment of a commissioner to conduct a court-monitored survey of the Shahi Idgah, an area adjacent to the Krishna Janmabhoomi temple in Mathura, which Hindus assert is the birthplace of Lord Krishna.
A bench comprising Justices Sanjiv Khanna and Dipankar Datta suspended the execution of the high court’s order, emphasising concerns about the vague nature of the commissioner’s appointment.
In December 2023, the plea of Hindu petitioners demanding a survey was admitted by Allahabad court but challenged by the Uttar Pradesh Sunni Wakf Board and the Idgah committee in the High Court.
Demanding full ownership of the contested 13.37 acres of land, the Hindu petitioners have claimed that the centuries-old mosque was built after demolishing the Katra Keshav Dev temple. They alleged the demolition was an order by Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb.
The petitioners claim as evidence some lotus carvings on the mosque, as well as shapes supposedly resembling the’sheshnag’ or the snake demigod in Hindu mythology. These are proofs that the mosque was built over a temple, they argue.
In essence, the Supreme Court’s action reflected a pause in implementing the high court’s directive, emphasizing the need for specificity in the purpose of appointing a commissioner for the survey of the Shahi Idgah premises in connection with the Krishna Janmabhoomi dispute. There are multiple cases pending in the courts with Hindu petitioners demanding the land.
