Varanasi court defers verdict on plea seeking carbon dating of ‘Shivling’ in Gyanvapi to Oct 11

Earlier, after hearing the arguments of the Hindu group and the mosque management committee regarding the matter, the court had reserved its order on September 29. The court had allowed the petition on September 22.

Earlier this year, a court in Varanasi had ordered the filming of the mosque based on a petition that sought permission to worship the idols of the Hindu deities located at the outer wall of the mosque. Following the videography, the Hindu petitioners claimed that a ‘Shivling’ was found inside the ‘wazookhana’, a small reservoir used by Muslims to perform ritual ablutions before offering namaz. The mosque management had, however, said that it was part of the fountain system of the ‘wazookhana’.

On September 12, the district court dismissed the Anjuman Intezamia Masjid Committee’s challenge to the civil suits, saying that Hindu groups are not barred by the Places of Worship Act and the suits seeking the right to worship inside the Gyanvapi mosque are maintainable.