The Madhya Pradesh High Court backs Hindu nationalists, ending the practice that since 2003 had allowed Muslims and Hindus to pray in the same historical complex on different days. The ruling specifically cites the Ayodhya case, which has had a domino effect in archaeological studies and claims in various parts of India.

 

Bhopal (AsiaNews/Agencies) – In a ruling issued today, the Madhya Pradesh High Court declared the Bhojshala complex, disputed between Hindus and Muslims, is a temple dedicated to the goddess Saraswati.

This latest decision touches the issue of claims to religious sites, highly sensitive in the wake of the Ayodhya affair in Uttar Pradesh, where Hindu nationalists demolished the Babri Mosque in 1992, which was followed by a ruling in 2019 by the Supreme Court of India definitively recognising the prior existence of a temple on the disputed site.

Now, in Madhya Pradesh, the local High Court ruled that the Bhojshala complex, a historic building in the city of Dhar, must be considered a temple, urging Muslims to seek an alternative site to build a mosque.

Both Hindus and Muslims have traditionally prayed at the disputed site, which is protected by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), on Tuesdays and Fridays respectively, according to a 2003 agreement.

Justices Vijay Kumar Shukla and Alok Awasthi based their decision on archaeological evidence and historical documents, citing the principles established by the Supreme Court in the Ayodhya case.

Based on “multi-disciplinary studies by the ASI and the fundamental rights under Articles 25 and 26 of the Constitution of India,” the bench concluded that the site was a temple, adding that it was an important centre of Sanskrit education in the past.

“There is a constitutional duty even to provide basic amenities to pilgrims, proper maintenance of law and order, and the preservation of the purity and pristine character of the deity,” the justices write. “We have noted that the continuity of Hindu worship at the site has, over time, never been extinguished. We record finding that historical literature establishes the character of the disputed area as a centre of Sanskrit learning,” they go on to say.

Hindu plaintiffs first brought the case to court, while a Jain plaintiff claimed the site was a religious temple. Muslims responded saying that the building was a mosque.

The court asked all parties to submit their observations regarding an extensive ASI report, based on a scientific investigation conducted between March and June 2024. The study noted that the current structure was built using the remains of earlier temples, while the existing mosque was erected later.

The lawyers for the Hindu side sought exclusive worship rights, citing a 1904 ASI report that identified an idol of Vagdevi now in the British Museum.

The Muslim side challenged the survey's findings and methodology, alleging a lack of transparency and carbon dating; it complained about unauthorised removals, arguing that the religious nature of the site had not been conclusively proven.

The case of the Bhojshala complex in Madhya Pradesh is not an isolated one; in fact, the Ayodhya affair has triggered a domino effect at several historic sites in India.

One of the most heated battles today is over the Gyanvapi complex in Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh. Here too, an ASI scientific investigation has highlighted that the mosque's western wall incorporates the remains of an ancient Hindu temple. Reused inscriptions and pillars, dating back to the era of the Mughal ruler Aurangzeb, were found.

The Muslim community has questioned the political use of archaeology and defends the structure's significance for Muslims. The local court, however, granted Hindus the right to pray in an underground section of the complex.

Another dispute concerns the Shahi Idgah mosque in Mathura, also in Uttar Pradesh. Hindus claim that Emperor Aurangzeb razed the 17th-century Keshavdev temple to build a Muslim place of worship.

Archival documents dating back to the colonial period (1920) and subsequent surveys have confirmed the overlapping of the structures. The courts have authorised technical inspections to map the site.

To stop these disputes from multiplying, the Indian parliament passed the Places of Worship (Special Provisions) Act in 1991, a law that freezes the religious status of all places of worship to the status of 15 August 1947, India's Independence Day.

The exception introduced for the Ayodhya site, explicitly excluded from this law, however, has weakened this provision. Muslim groups accuse the courts of circumventing the 1991 law by allowing new archaeological investigations.

• india
• madhya pradesh
• dhar
• high court
• bhojshala complex
• archaeological survey
• hindu temples
• mosques