In a sharp reaction to the Madhya Pradesh High Court’s ruling declaring the disputed Bhoshala complex in Dhar a temple dedicated to Goddess Saraswati, AIMIM president Asaduddin Owaisi on Friday said he hoped the Supreme Court would set aside the order.
The remarks come after the Madhya Pradesh High Court declared that the disputed Bhoshala site is a temple, and that the Center and ASI can decide on its administration and governance.
Read also | The disputed Bhojshala site has been declared a temple by the Madhya Pradesh High Court
Owaisi responded to the HC ruling
Responding to the Madhya Pradesh High Court ruling, Owaisi said he hoped the Supreme Court would set aside the order, and compared it to the ruling in Babri Masjid.
“We hope that the Supreme Court will set this right and set aside this order. There is a striking similarity with the judgment in the Babri Masjid case,” Owaisi said in a post on X.
Muslim clerics rule HC
Muslim clerics and members of the management committee of Kamal Maula Mosque also expressed their disappointment over the ruling and said they would appeal the matter in the Supreme Court.
Dhar Shahr Qazi Waqar Sadiq said: “We will review the decision issued against us. We will appeal the ruling before the Supreme Court.”
Zulfiqar Pathan, head of the Kamal Maula Mosque prayer committee, said he would not comment on the ruling until the entire ruling is read.
“Our senior lawyers, Salman Khurshid, Shobha Menon and Tauseef Warsi, presented very strong arguments and represented the side of the Muslim community properly,” he said.
He said that if there were “defects in the judgement”, they would approach the Supreme Court.
“To the people of the state, I would just like to say that everyone should be patient and peaceful. This is not a complete or one-sided defeat. The doors of the Supreme Court are still open before us, and we will continue to fight the legal battle there in all possible ways,” Pathan added.
Read also | Bhoshala-Kamal Maula dispute: Madhya Pradesh High Court to deliver its verdict today
What is the ruling of the representative of the Supreme Court?
A bench of the Indore High Court in Madhya Pradesh on Friday ruled that the disputed Bhoshala-Kamal Maula mosque complex in Dhar district is a temple dedicated to Goddess Saraswati.
In its much-awaited judgement, the Supreme Court observed that there are indications of the existence of a Sanskrit learning center and a temple of Goddess Saraswati at Bhoshala. It held that the religious character of the disputed Bhojshala-Kamal Maula mosque complex indicated that it was a temple of Goddess Saraswati.
The Supreme Court also said that the Muslim community, which refers to the 11th-century monument as Kamal Maula Masjid, can apply to the state government for allotment of separate land in the area for construction of a mosque.
