Team Clarion
LUCKNOW — The authorities on Sunday began demolishing a three-storey mosque in Uttar Pradesh’s Kushinagar district after a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader claimed that the mosque allegedly encroached some part of the government land .
According to reports, the demolition was started amid heavy deployment of the police force after putting up barricades on all sides of the mosque. Earlier, the court had stayed the demolition of the mosque till 8 February. As the time of stay ended, the authorities began its demolition.
The matter came to fore on 17 September last year when BJP leader Rambhachan Singh claimed that Asia’s biggest mosque is being built on the government land in the Hata area.
However, Zakir Khan, from the mosque committee, said that the mosque has got 32 decimal land from Zakir Hussain and Azmatunnisa. The mosque was built on that 30 decimal and two decimal land of the mosque are vacant in the vicinity of the mosque.
Talking to reporters, Saifullah Khan, representative of the Mosque slammed the bulldozer and said that the demolition was in violation of the Supreme Court guidelines.
“The authorities were given an explanation in response to their notices issued within time at the Nagar Palika office. I asked them for the order on the explanation as soon as I came here. No order was shown to us. We were not given a hard or soft copy. But they continue taking action,” said Khan.
According to him, the previous district magistrate had measured the land. It was found that land worth 33 decimal belongs to the mosque and the mosque is situated on 29 decimal land.
Khan also said that the one who filed a complaint about the mosque owns no land in the surrounding areas.
“If somebody gives a complaint at the BJP letterhead, religious structures of any community would be demolished on that complaint only. This is blatant injustice,” he said.
In the surrounding area, the land belongs to the police station and the nagar palika. It had been measured by the district administration. The report about the measurement of the land was displayed publicly. The report had concluded that there was no encroachment.
“When there is no encroachment, how is it an unauthorised occupation?” asked Khan.
The mosque is the latest target of Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath’s bulldozer actions. Despite the Supreme Court guidelines, the government continues to violate the guidelines, bulldozing properties, religious and residential – mostly belonging to muslims.
