The Supreme Court has issued an order for maintaining the current state until July 26 on the ongoing scientific survey of the Gyanvapi mosque premises conducted by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI). The order was passed last week by a Varanasi court. The bench led by the Chief Justice of India (CJI) DY Chandrachud acknowledged the order permitting the survey was issued on Friday.
To provide the Muslim party with adequate time to approach the Allahabad High Court, the Supreme Court directed that the district court's order would not be enforced until 5 pm on July 26. The Court also instructed the Registrar (Judicial) of the High Court to ensure that once the Muslim party files its case in the High Court, it is scheduled for hearing within the timeframe of the status quo order.
Initially, the Court proposed to list the matter on July 28 and ordered the ASI not to carry out any invasive work during the survey. However, after Senior Advocate Huzefa Ahmadi, representing the Muslim party, informed the Court that the ASI had already begun digging at the western wall of the mosque, the Court decided to address the matter on the same day.
Solicitor General Tushar Mehta assured the Court that the walls were not damaged, and the ASI was only conducting measurements and photography. He confirmed that there would be no structural alterations made to the premises.
Ahmadi, however, raised concerns about the urgency displayed by the ASI in conducting the survey and requested a stay on the order.
Earlier, on October 14 of the previous year, the district court had dismissed a plea for a scientific investigation to determine whether an object found during the survey was a Shivling or a fountain.
The Allahabad High Court, on May 12, had permitted a scientific investigation to ascertain the nature of the object without causing any harm to it. The Supreme Court temporarily suspended this direction while seeking responses from the central and Uttar Pradesh governments in response to an appeal filed by a Muslim party challenging the High Court's decision. This matter is still pending before the Supreme Court.
However, on July 21, the Varanasi court instructed the ASI director to conduct a scientific survey of the mosque premises without causing any damage to the structure. This led the Muslim party to move to the Supreme Court, challenging the order. Considering the circumstances, the Supreme Court granted the petitioners time to approach the Allahabad High Court and directed that the district court's order would remain in abeyance until Wednesday, July 26.
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