The Supreme Court of India has dismissed a plea for the removal of Mathura’s Shahi Idgah mosque in the ongoing Krishna Janmabhoomi case. The court cited the issue’s already pending status as the reason for dismissing the plea. A bench of Justices Sanjiv Khanna and Dipankar Datta declined to interfere with the Allahabad High Court’s previous order rejecting a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) seeking recognition of the mosque site as Krishna Janmabhoomi and the mosque’s removal.
Let’s not have a multiplicity of litigation. You filed it as a PIL, which is why it was rejected (by the High Court). File it as otherwise, we will see, Justice Khanna told the petitioner.
The Supreme Court clarified that the dismissal of the Special Leave Petition (SLP) does not comment on the right of parties to challenge the validity of any enactment nor prevent anyone from raising such a challenge. The court emphasized that the PIL was not maintainable due to the pending consideration of several civil suits regarding the issues raised in it.
The Allahabad High Court had previously dismissed a PIL on October 12, 2023, which sought the removal of the Shahi Idgah Mosque in Mathura. The petitioner, advocate Mahek Maheshwari, claimed that the mosque was built on the site believed to be the birthplace of Lord Krishna, known as Krishna Janmabhoomi.
The PIL argued that various texts recorded the site in question as Krishna Janmabhoomi land and contended that the mosque was unlawfully built by forcibly acquiring the land. It further claimed that the mosque could not be considered a proper mosque based on Islamic jurisprudence since it was established on forcibly acquired land. Conversely, according to Hindu jurisprudence, even a temple in ruins retained its status as a temple.
The dismissal of the plea by the Supreme Court has upheld the previous order of the Allahabad High Court. The case will continue to be heard within the framework of the pending civil suits. The decision of the court is deemed to have a significant impact on the long-standing and emotionally charged Krishna Janmabhoomi dispute.
The Supreme Court’s ruling maintains the status quo, and it remains to be seen whether any fresh legal action will be pursued by the parties involved. This outcome is likely to generate further debate and reactions from interested parties representing both sides of the dispute. The Krishna Janmabhoomi case continues to garner attention and raise significant constitutional and religious questions.
