Legal Battle Brews Over 800-Year-Old Shamsi Shahi Mosque In Budaun As UP Court Accepts Plea

Budaun: Amidst the row over an ASI survey at a mosque in the Sambhal District, a court in Uttar Pradesh has accepted the petition against a mosque in the Budaun district. The petitioner, in his plea, has claimed that he has presented concrete evidence in support of his claims regarding Shamsi Shahi mosque in Budaun and has also sought permission from the court to carry out worship on the premises. The plea reportedly was filed before the in 2022, which the court has accepted to hear now.

Reports suggested the petitioner Advocate Vivek Render, on Monday, said that the petition was filed before the UP court in 2022 and added that the court has accepted that the plea is maintainable.

Adv Vivek told news agency ANI, "The matter is that the property in dispute was actually a temple of Neelkanth Mahadev. The petition was filed on August 8, 2022. The court has accepted the petition. The court also accepted that the application is maintainable. Our main demand is that we must be granted permission to offer prayers at Neelkanth Mahadev temple just like it was done in earlier times."

The Shamsi Shahi Masjid, located on an elevated area in Sotha Mohalla, is considered to be the highest structure built in Budaun.

The mosque, which is considered to be the 7th largest mosque in the country having a capacity of housing 23,500 people, is also believed to be the third oldest existing mosque.

However, the management committee of the Shamsi Shahi mosque has told the court in Budaun that the petition from the Hindu outfit was not maintainable.

The Masjid Intezamia Committee of Shamsi Shahi mosque and Waqf Board completed their arguments before the fast-track court on Saturday and the court will now hear the matter on December 3.

The development in the case of Budaun Mosque comes amid a political row over the violence following a survey of the Jama Masjid Committee in Sambhal in which five people were killed and dozens of others, including cops, were injured.

Meanwhile, there has also been a row over a court notice in a civil suit which claims that a Shiva temple exists in the dargah of Sufi saint Moinuddin Chishti in Rajasthan's Ajmer.