Gyanvapi Masjid row: Plea filed in Varanasi court to demolish wall beside wazukhana in mosque, says lawyer

Varanasi (UP): In the Gyanvapi Masjid row, amid a strike by lawyers, advocate Madan Mohan Yadav said that they have moved an application at Varanasi court, "seeking permission from bar association to let the hearing continue."

Advocate Vishnu Jain while addressing the issue said, "Yesterday, the Court ordered to remove Advocate Commissioner Ajay Mishra. Besides, we've moved an application in the court that the wall beneath 'wazukhana' (of Gyanvapi Masjid) be demolished and we should be allowed to go there."

The Varanasi civil court on Tuesday (May 17) removed the Advocate-Commissioner Ajay Kumar Mishra from the panel formed to survey the Gyanvapi mosque. The court-appointed special Commission has also received two-more days to submit the survey report. The three-day-long court-monitored videography survey of the Kashi Vishwanath Temple-Gyanvapi Mosque complex in Varanasi concluded on Monday. The Hindu petitioner in the case, Sohan Lal Arya on Monday claimed that the committee found a Shivling at the complex. Arya, who accompanied the court commission for the mosque survey, said that they have found "conclusive evidence".

The Supreme Court heard the plea seeking a stay on the survey of the Gyanvapi Mosque complex in Varanasi on Tuesday and observed that till the next date of hearing Varanasi District Majistrate will ensure that the Shivling area will be protected but it will not impede access of Muslims to the mosque for prayers. Meanwhile, the President of the Hindu Sena, Vishnu Gupta on Tuesday filed an intervention application seeking directions for dismissal of the petition filed by Anjuman Intezamia Masjid Management Committee challenging the videography survey of the Gyanvapi Mosque complex, which is adjacent to the famous Kashi Vishwanath Temple in Varanasi.

After the conclusion of the survey, the Varanasi court ordered the District Magistrate of Varanasi, Kaushal Raj Sharma, "to seal the area where the Shivling was found and to bar people from going to the place."In its order, the court said that the DM, police commissioner and the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) commandant Varanasi will be responsible for the security of the sealed area.