New Delhi: Another row over a mosque is brewing. And this time it is Delhi’s iconic Jama Masjid. In a letter written to the director general of Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), Hindu Sena’s national president Vishnu Gupta has requested for a survey of Jama Masjid. Gupta has claimed in the letter that the idols of Hindu deities were buried within the mosque.
He further alleged that the historic Jama Masjid mosque was built after razing down of temples in Jodhpur and Udaipur. The Hindu Sena president said that the remains of these shrines, including the idols of deities, were used, supposedly by Aurangzeb, in the stairs of the mosque as an affront for the Hindus.
‘Religious sentiments hurt’
Gupta pointed out that ASI, as a responsible authority, must carry out a thorough examination of the structure of Jama Masjid mosque. The letter claimed that remains of a number of temples and idols of deities are buried under the mosque’s stairs. He asserted that this situation hurt his religious sentiments and obstructed his right to worship the deities believed to be buried there.
Gupta’s letter said: “Your office is requested to survey Jama Masjid, Delhi so that the idols of our deities can be preserved and concrete steps can be taken to install them in the temple and the truth about Aurangzeb can be revealed to the world.”
Officials of Jama Masjid refrained from commenting on the matter. ASI’s spokesperson Nandini Bhattacharya Sahu said that the organisation had no knowledge about the letter or any other correspondence regarding Jama Masjid.
This comes even as the row over survey of the Shahi Jama Masjid in Sambhal rages on. On November 24, violence erupted in Sambhal over a court-ordered mosque survey in the Mughal-era mosque, claiming five lives. Protesters, who had gathered near the mosque, had clashed with security personnel.
On Wednesday, Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi, Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi and some other workers were stopped at the Ghazipur border as they were heading towards Sambhal. The Sambhal district administration had barred outsiders from visiting the district till December 10 to maintain law and order.
