On Wednesday, January 22, 2025, the Supreme Court of India extended its stay on the Allahabad High Court's order that allowed a court-monitored survey of the Shahi Idgah Mosque complex in Mathura. This complex is located next to the Krishna Janmabhoomi temple, a site of great religious significance for Hindus.

The case is about a disagreement between Hindus and Muslims regarding the religious importance of the land. Hindus claim that the mosque was built on land that belongs to the Shri Krishna Janmabhoomi Trust and want the mosque to be moved. Muslims disagree with these claims and oppose the request.

Supreme Court’s order

A group of judges in the Supreme Court, led by Chief Justice Sanjiv Khanna, decided to keep the block on the Allahabad High Court's order. The court said it will wait until the week starting April 1, 2025, to hear the mosque committee's appeal against the court-monitored survey.

The Chief Justice explained that the Supreme Court has to decide on three things:

  1. An appeal about combining the lawsuits filed by Hindus.
  2. A challenge to the Places of Worship (Special Provisions) Act of 1991.
  3. Whether the survey of the mosque should happen or not.

In the meantime, the court's decision to block the survey will stay in place.

Details of the Allahabad High Court’s order

On December 14, 2023, the Allahabad High Court allowed a survey of the Shahi Idgah Mosque complex to be monitored by the court. The court also approved appointing a commissioner to oversee the survey. However, on January 16, 2024, the Supreme Court stopped the order, saying more legal review was needed.

Advocate Vishnu Shankar Jain, who represented the Hindu parties, argued that the appeal by the mosque committee no longer mattered. He pointed out that the High Court had already rejected a request from the Muslim parties, who challenged 18 lawsuits related to the Krishna Janmabhoomi-Shahi Idgah issue. The High Court decided that the religious nature of the mosque should be decided first.

Places of Worship (Special Provisions) Act, 1991

The Places of Worship (Special Provisions) Act of 1991 is an important law in this case. This law says that the religious character of any place of worship cannot be changed from what it was on August 15, 1947, the day India became independent. The only exception to this law was the Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid dispute.

In Mathura, the Hindu parties filed a case, claiming that the Shahi Idgah Mosque was built on land that belongs to the Shri Krishna Janmabhoomi Trust. They asked the court to handle this case in the same way as the Babri Masjid-Ram Janmabhoomi dispute, which was decided by the Supreme Court.

The Supreme Court's decision to continue the pause on the survey of the Shahi Idgah Mosque shows that the case is still very important and involves complex legal issues. The court has not yet made decisions on the three main questions related to the case. It also reminded me that the survey must be done carefully without damaging the mosque.

As the legal battle goes on, the final decision will have a big impact on the religious situation in Mathura, especially regarding the Krishna Janmabhoomi temple and the nearby Shahi Idgah mosque.

The next hearing will take place in April 2025, where the Supreme Court will discuss the case further and decide whether the survey can proceed and how to deal with the other legal questions.