Hindu Body Urges SC to Lift Order Restraining Action on ASI’s Bhojshala Report

Hindu petitioners have approached the Supreme Court to lift a stay granted on April 1, which restrained any action based on an Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) report on “Bhojshala,” a medieval-era structure in Madhya Pradesh’s Dhar district claimed by both Hindus and Muslims.

The application, filed by the Hindu Front of Justice (the original petitioner in the case before the Madhya Pradesh High Court) and others, noted that the April 1 order of the apex court has effectively stayed proceedings before the High Court. Filed through advocate Vishnu Shankar Jain, the application emphasized that the questions in the High Court writ petition must be decided on merit at the earliest, and thus, the Supreme Court’s interim order of April 1 should be vacated.

The application highlighted that the ASI conducted a survey as per the High Court’s order and submitted a report on July 15, 2024. This report was provided to both the writ petitioner’s and the respondents’ counsel. The application argued that no useful purpose would be served by continuing the interim order and that it should be vacated in the interest of justice and given the current facts and circumstances.

The application also stated that the Special Leave Petition filed by the Maulana Kamaluddin Welfare Society (representing the Muslim side) against the High Court’s March 11 order for a scientific survey by the ASI has become infructuous. The petitioner can object to the ASI report and raise all relevant questions in this petition.

On April 1, the top court had refused to stay the scientific survey of Bhojshala, an ASI-protected 11th-century monument, but had directed that no action should be taken without its leave based on the survey’s outcome. “It is made clear that no physical excavation should be undertaken that will change the character of the premises in question,” the bench stated.

The High Court’s March 11 order directed the ASI to carry out a survey of the Bhojshala complex within six weeks. As per an ASI arrangement from April 7, 2003, Hindus perform puja at the Bhojshala premises on Tuesdays, while Muslims offer namaz in the complex on Fridays. Hindus consider Bhojshala a temple dedicated to Vagdevi (Goddess Saraswati), while the Muslim community calls it Kamal Maula mosque.

The High Court’s March 11 order specified, “A proper, comprehensively documented report prepared by an Expert Committee of not less than five senior-most officers of ASI, headed by the Director General/Additional Director General of the ASI himself, be submitted before this Court within six weeks from the date of receipt of a certified copy of this order.”

The High Court order followed an application by the Hindu Front for Justice (HFJ). HFJ president Ranjana Agnihotri and others filed the plea against the Union of India and others.