SC extends stay on survey of Shahi Idgah mosque complex

New Delhi: The Supreme Court Wednesday extended its stay on the Allahabad High Court’s order permitting a court-monitored survey of Mathura’s Shahi Idgah Mosque complex, adjacent to the Krishna Janmabhoomi temple.

Chief Justice Sanjiv Khanna, heading a three-judge bench, scheduled hearings for the first week of April. “There are three issues pending now—the issue of an intra-court appeal, and the other one is the Act itself,” stated the Chief Justice, referring to challenges to the Places of Worship Act, 1991.

The initial stay was implemented on January 16, following the High Court’s December 14 order allowing the survey. The mosque committee had appealed against this decision, though advocate Vishnu Shankar Jain, representing Hindu parties, argued this appeal had become “infructuous” due to subsequent court developments.

The High Court previously dismissed Muslim parties’ objections regarding the maintainability of 18 cases related to the dispute. “The religious character of the mosque needs to be determined,” the court had ruled, rejecting arguments that these suits violated the Places of Worship Act.

This 1991 Act prohibits changing any religious structure’s character from its status at Independence, with the Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid dispute as the sole exception.

The dispute centres on a suit filed in Mathura’s Civil Judge Senior Division court seeking the mosque’s relocation. Hindu petitioners claim it was built on 13.37 acres belonging to the Shri Krishna Janmabhoomi Trust and requested the High Court conduct proceedings similar to the Babri Masjid-Ram Janmabhoomi case.

While authorising the survey, the High Court had specified protective measures: “No harm should be caused to the structure during the exercise,” suggesting oversight by three advocate commissioners.

The contested site holds religious significance for Hindus, with petitioners claiming evidence of an ancient temple’s existence. The mosque committee continues to challenge these claims through legal channels, marking another chapter in India’s complex religious property disputes.

The Supreme Court’s extension of the stay maintains the status quo while larger constitutional and procedural questions await examination in April.