Railway officials said on Thursday that they have put a notice on the wall of Janj Shaheeda Mosque at the main entrance of Kashi railway station, demanding that the building be vacated by June 20 as part of the legal process for expansion of the station.
However, the mosque’s governing body, the Jamia Mosque Committee, described the notice as illegal and said it would challenge the move in court.
Station Superintendent Arpit Gupta of Cantt Railway Station said that the land surrounding Kashi railway station needs to be cleared of encroachments for expansion of the station and proposed construction work.
Also Read: UP: Mosque built on Gram Sabha land in Moradabad demolished as part of drive to remove encroachments
“Various locations have been identified and action is being taken accordingly,” Gupta said.
He said that the railways and district administration had earlier carried out anti-encroachment drives in and around Kashi railway station. He added that as part of a joint exercise, the Hanuman Temple and Ajmer Shaheed Mosque located in Rajghat area have already been removed.
Gupta said the notice, which was pasted three days ago following the prescribed legal procedure, ordered the evacuation of the Janj Shaheeda Mosque at the station gate.
Reacting to this development, the Secretary of the Jamia Mosque Committee, Muhammad Yasin, claimed that the railway notice is invalid as it does not bear a date, signature or logo of it.
“If the railways have pasted such notices, they are trying to disturb law and order,” Yasin said.
He claimed that the Railways had submitted an affidavit before the court admitting that the mosque was owned by Muslims.
Yassin claimed that the committee was in possession of a map dating back to 1980 that clearly indicated the mosque, adding that the railways were not present at the site at that time.
The mosque built on Gram Sabha land in UP was demolished
In another incident, the administration on Wednesday destroyed a mosque allegedly constructed on Gram Subha land in a village, officials said.
Police and revenue department teams were present during the demolition operation at Pir Khera village under Bhagbatpur police station area. Superintendent of Police Kunwar Akash Singh said security had been beefed up in the area and the illegal construction had been removed using a bulldozer.
