Delhi High Court Directs DDA To Maintain Status Quo On Land Where 600-Yr-Old Mosque In Mehrauli Was Demolished

The Delhi High Court on Monday directed the Delhi Development Authority (DDA) to maintain status quo on the land on which the 600-year-old mosque, Masjid Akhonji, was demolished in city's Mehrauli area.Justice Sachin Datta passed the order while dealing with an urgent application filed by the Managing Committee of the Delhi Waqf Board. The status quo shall be maintained till February 12. The court however clarified that the status quo order is passed only with respect to the khasra number where the mosque was situated and will not act as a bar on the DDA to carry out its action on adjoining areas.The mosque, along with Madrasa Bahrul Uloom and various graves, were demolished by the DDA on January 30.It is the case of the Managing Committee of Delhi Waqf Board that the mosque and madrasa were demolished in a brazen manner. It is claimed that the Imam of the mosque, Zakir Hussain, and his family were left without shelter and their hutment was also demolished.The counsel appearing for the Managing Committee of Delhi Waqf Board submitted that the demolition was carried out by DDA illegally and in violation of judicial orders. He further submitted that the demolition was done without conducting any survey of the property or prior notice. He also alleged that copies of the Quran were torn, the children were not even allowed to take their belongings and none of the records were protected. On the other hand, the DDA's counsel questioned the locus of the Managing Committee of Delhi Waqf Board in challenging the demolition and contended that the demolition action was taken pursuant to the recommendation of the religious committee on January 04. The counsel informed the court that the religious committee not only recommended the demolition of the mosque but also some temples and other religious structures. He added that the Managing Committee's counsel was trying to give a religious colour to the matter. Furthermore, the counsel also told the court, on instructions, that about 20 religious books are under the safe custody of DDA which will be handed over. The counsel appearing for the Delhi Waqf Board told the court that although the CEO of the Board participated in the meeting of the religious committee, he gave written objection against the recommendation to demolish the mosque. Title: THE MANAGING COMMITTEE OF DELHI WAQF BOARD v. THE GOVERNMENT OF NCT (GNCT), DELHI & ORS.Citation: 2024 LiveLaw (Del) 135

Delhi High Court Directs DDA To Maintain Status Quo On Land Where 600-Yr-Old Mosque In Mehrauli Was Demolished

Nupur Thapliyal

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