Bhoshala Temple – The disputed Kamal Maula mosque complex in Dhar district is a temple dedicated to Goddess Saraswati, an Indore bench of the Madhya Pradesh High Court sat on Friday and ordered the government to provide a separate piece of land to Muslims for construction of a mosque.
“The religious character of the disputed area of Bhoshala complex and Kamal Maula Mosque is considered to be a Bhoshala with a temple to Goddess Vagdevi (Saraswati),” a bench of Justices Vijay Kumar Shukla and Alok Awasthi said in a 242-page ruling.
The court also decided that the disputed area had been a protected monument under the Monuments, Archaeological Sites and Monuments Act 1958, since 18 March 1904, and annulled part of the order of 7 April 2003, which had prohibited Hindus from praying in the complex but allowed Muslims to pray.
“The earlier structure was a center of education and religious activity associated with the worship of Saraswati (Sharda Sadan). Subsequently, the structure was modified, damaged and reused, converting it into a mosque. A large inscription (15th century, Khilji period) refers to the destruction of the idols and conversion of the temple into a mosque,” the ruling said.
While arriving at the decision, the bench said it considered archaeological and historical facts, ASI notifications and survey report on the anvil of legal provisions of the ASI Act and also on the basis of the principles laid down in the Ayodhya case.
“We record a finding that the historical literature drawn up establishes that the character of the disputed area was Bhojshala as a center of Sanskrit learning associated with Raja Bhoj of the Parmar dynasty, and the literature and architectural reference including those associated with Raja Bhoj period indicate the existence of a temple dedicated to Goddess Saraswati at Dhar.”
The court did not issue any orders regarding the demand for the return of the statue of the goddess from a London museum, and its re-establishment within the Bhojshala complex, except for asking the central government to consider representation in this regard.
A group calling itself the Hindu Front for Justice approached the Supreme Court in 2022 seeking a scientific survey to determine the religious character of Bhojshala. The Supreme Court ordered the survey to be conducted on March 11, 2024, which was conducted between March 22 and June 30 at the one-acre site.
ASI submitted a 2,200-page report prepared following a scientific survey of the site dating back to the 11th century. The report concluded that the monument was built from the remains of earlier temples, and that the current mosque structure was constructed centuries later, as evidenced by inscriptions, sculptural fragments and architectural remains.
The panel, which has been holding daily hearings since April 6, heard arguments for 36 days before reserving judgment earlier this week.
