Krishna Janmabhoomi Row: SC refuses to stay Allahabad HC order on survey; know about the dispute here

A securitypersonnel stands guard near Shahi Idgah and Krishna Janmabhoomi Temple on the 26th anniversary of Babri mosque demolition in Mathura-PTI

The Supreme Court, on December 15, declined to grant a stay on the Allahabad High Court's directive to appoint a court commissioner to examine the Shahi-Idgah mosque concerning the Krishna Janmabhoomi-Shahi Idgah Masjid dispute. The Muslim side had approached the apex court challenging the Allahabad HC order allowing the advocate commissioner to survey the disputed site.

On December 14, the Allahabad HC approved a plea to appoint a court-monitored advocate commissioner to survey the disputed Shahi Idgah premises adjoining the Sri Krishna Janmabhoomi temple in Uttar Pradesh's Mathura.

The main matter about the Krishna Janmbhoomi case was mentioned before a bench headed by Justices Sanjiv Khanna and SVN Bhatti on December 15. The top court refused to put a stay on the survey, and will hear the matter on January 9.

Also Read: HC to hear plea for survey of Shahi Idgah mosque on Dec 18

Timeline of the case

-September 24, 2020: Lucknow-based advocate Ranjana Agnihotri and six others filed a plea seeking a survey of the Shahi Idgah mosque. The plea further sought the removal of the 17th-century mosque. According to the petitioners, the mosque was built on a portion of 13.37 acres belonging to the Sri Krishna Janmabhoomi Trust.

-September 30, 2020: The plea was rejected as non-admissible. The civil judge said that since none of the petitioners were from Mathura, they did not hold a valid stake in the matter. The ruling was scrapped by the district court. A revised petition was later filed in the district court.

-May 1, 2023: The Allahabad HC ordered the case to be heard by the civil court.

-July 10, 2023: The Allahabad HC dismissed a writ petition filed by the Trust. It requested the court to direct the Mathura civil judge to decide its application for a scientific survey of Idgah mosque premises.

- July 11, 2023: The Muslim side approached the Supreme Court challenging orders of the Allahabad High Court that directed to club all matters related to the Krishna Janmabhoomi.

- September 22, 2023: The Supreme Court rejected a plea seeking a scientific survey of Shahi Idgah mosque.

History of dispute

One of the most visited religious sites in the country, the Krishna Janmbhoomi temple is said to have been built around the prison cell in which Lord Krishna was born. The temple has allegedly been built five times over. The ownership of the 13.37 acres surrounding the temple has been a matter of dispute for decades.

According to a 1935 Allahabad HC ruling, the land originally belonged to the King of Varanasi. Various reports, however, suggest that the mosque was built by Aurangzeb in 1670 on the site of an earlier temple. Before the mosque was built, Raja Veer Singh Bundela of Orchha had also built a temple on the same premises in 1618.

In 1815, Raja Patni Mal of Benaras bought the 13.77-acre land in an auction from the East India Company. The Raja’s descendants sold the land to Jugal Kishore Birla for Rs 13,400. It was reportedly registered in the names of Pandit Madan Mohan Malaviya, Goswami Ganesh Dutt, and Bhiken Lalji Aattrey.

Businessman Yugal Kishor Birla bought the land and launched the Sri Krishnabhoomi Trust to build a Krishna temple in the area in 1944. In 1958, the responsibilities of the temple trust were taken over by the Shri Krishna Janmasthan Seva Sangh.

In 1964, the Sangh filed a civil lawsuit in connection with the ownership of the land. In 1968, the temple trust and the Shahi Idgah mosque management committee reached an agreement.

While the ownership of the land remained with the temple trust, the Trust Masjid Idgah managed the rights to run the temple. This meant that the temple trust had no right to stake claims on the masjid land. However, the 2020 civil suit said the agreement was “an illegal compromise”.