New Delhi: The All-India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB) in a statement expressed grave concern over recent legal claims targeting mosques and dargahs across India. The Board has urged Chief Justice of India Sanjiv Khanna to take suo motu action and direct lower courts to avoid entertaining such disputes, which it believes violate the Places of Worship Act, 1991.
Dr. SQR Ilyas, spokesperson for AIMPLB, stated that these claims amount to a “blatant mockery” of the law and the Constitution. The Places of Worship Act, enacted by Parliament, mandates that the status of all religious sites as of August 15, 1947, shall remain unchanged, barring challenges to this status. “The law was designed to prevent the targeting of religious places, particularly in the aftermath of the Babri Masjid case,” he emphasised.
The Board voiced distress over the increasing number of claims filed in courts, including disputes about the Jama Masjid in Sambhal, and now the Ajmer Dargah, which has been alleged to be the Sankatmochan Mahadev Temple. The West Civil Court in Ajmer has accepted the petition for hearing and issued notices, adding to the Board’s concerns.
Highlighting a pattern of such disputes, Ilyas mentioned previous cases involving the Gyanvapi mosque in Varanasi, Shahi Eidgah in Mathura, Bhojshala mosque in Madhya Pradesh, Teele Wali Masjid in Lucknow, and the Shahi Jama Masjid in Sambhal. He described the targeting of the Ajmer Dargah as “shameful and disgraceful.”
Ilyas also referred to the SC observations during the Babri Masjid case, where the apex court upheld the validity of the Places of Worship Act and stated that no new claims could be entertained after its enactment. The AIMPLB called for immediate judicial intervention to ensure adherence to the law and to preserve communal harmony.
