Gyanvapi: Supreme Court Stays ASI Survey till 5pm 26 July

On Monday, the Supreme Court Stayed ASI Survey in and Around Gyanvapi masjid till July 26 by 5pm.  Supreme Court  issued an order restraining the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) from carrying out any invasive work around the Gyanvapi mosque, situated next to the Kashi Vishwanath temple in Varanasi. Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud, leading the bench, acknowledged the urgency of the matter as highlighted by senior advocate Huzefa Ahmadi, who represented the mosque committee.

While hearing the case, CJI DY Chandrachud said that the Muslim side should file an appeal in the Allahabad High Court against the Varanasi district court’s decision. The Supreme Court said that the Muslim side should appeal in the High Court only by this evening. The Supreme Court has also said that the High Court should conduct the hearing before the expiry of the stay. Along with this, the ASI has been ordered not to do survey work in the Gyanvapi campus till 5 pm on Wednesday.

During the proceedings, the top court instructed Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, representing the Uttar Pradesh government, to communicate to the ASI team that no invasive work or excavation should be conducted at the site until further notice.

Previously, a Varanasi court had directed the ASI to conduct a comprehensive scientific survey, which might include excavation if deemed necessary, to determine the mosque’s historical background. However, the survey will not encompass the mosque’s “wazookhana,” a reservoir used by Muslim devotees for ritual ablutions. This decision follows an earlier Supreme Court order that protects the area within the complex where a structure claimed to be a “Shivling” by Hindu litigants exists.

District judge A K Vishvesh has set a deadline for the ASI to submit a report, along with video clips and photographs of the survey proceedings, to the court by August 4.