HINDU prayers will continue in the southern cellar of the Gyanvapi mosque in Varanasi, the Allahabad High Court said on Monday while dismissing a plea that had challenged the district court’s order to this effect. Justice Rohit Ranjan Agarwal rejected two appeals filed bythe mosque managementcommittee challenging theVaranasi district judge’sJanuary 17 orderthat appointed thedistrict magistrate as the receiver of the “Vyas Tehkhana” orsouthern cellar of the mosque and January 31 order by which he allowed ‘puja’ to be performed there.

 

The High Court said worship will continue in the “Vyas Tehkhana” of the mosque adjacent to the KashiVishwanath temple. Mohammad Yasin, joint secretary of Anjuman Intezamia Masajid, the committee that manages the affairs of the Gyanvapi, said that their lawyers are studying the judgement and they might approach the Supreme Court against the order. Dismissing the appeals, Justice Agarwal said, “After going through the entire records of the case and considering the arguments of the parties concerned, the court did not find any ground to interfere in the judgement passed by the district judge on January 17, appointing the Varanasi district magistrate as the receiver of the property, as well as the order dated January 31 by which the district court permitted puja in the tehkhana.”

 

Going through the argument made by the Muslim side that the January 31 order was passed without any application, the High Court said, “In the instant case, by order dated January 17 the composite prayer made in application was allowed, but only relief (a) was incorporated appointing receiver. Relief (b) allowing worship was added on January 31, 2024 after it was brought to the notice of the Court and order stood modified/ amended in terms of Sections 151/152 CPC.” “I find that the challenge made to the order dated January 31 on the plea of res judicata is totally unfounded as the relief prayed by the plaintiff was granted on January 17, 2024 but part of it was not incorporated in the order which was subsequently modified/ amended,” Justice Agarwal said.