Gyanvapi Survey: ASI Requests Varanasi Court not to Disclose Report for Add’l 4 Weeks

The Archeological Survey of India (ASI) on Wednesday requested a Varanasi court not to disclose its survey report on the Gyanvapi mosque complex for at least an additional four weeks, as per Hindu site counsel, Madan Mohan Yadav.

Varanasi district court judge A K Vishvesh subsequently adjourned the proceedings until 4^th January, 2024.

According to Yadav, the ASI sought a four-week extension before unveiling the sealed survey report.

The ASI had submitted its survey findings to the district court in a sealed cover on December 18, 2023.

The court had ordered the survey in response to petitioners’ claims asserting that the 17th-century mosque was built atop a pre-existing temple.

The ASI conducted a scientific survey of the Gyanvapi premises, situated adjacent to the Kashi Vishwanath temple, with the objective of determining whether the mosque was constructed over the remains of a pre-existing Hindu temple structure.

Pursuant to the directive of the district court, the survey was conducted to investigate the Gyanvapi mosque complex. The court, in its order dated July 21, explicitly articulated the necessity to conduct a thorough examination beneath the mosque’s domes, within the cellars, and along the western wall.

The court specified that the ASI should scrutinize the plinth and pillars to ascertain the building’s age and nature. Additionally, the court instructed the ASI to ensure that the structure on the disputed land was not harmed during the investigative process.