Gyanvapi Masjid row explained: Know Hindu side's petition, what's next in legal proceedings of case

The Varanasi court on Monday issued a key order in the ongoing Gyanvapi mosque case, where it said that the plea filed by the Hindu petitioners will be maintainable in court, meaning that the matter will be heard in front of a bench soon.

The order of the Varanasi district court sparked major criticism from the Muslim community and several political leaders, while the Bhartiya Janta Party and Vishwa Hindu Parishad welcomed the decision of the district court bench.

The case is being heard by the district court following an apex court order. The Supreme Court had ordered: "Keeping the complexity and sensitivity of the matter in view, the civil suit before the civil judge in Varanasi shall be heard before a senior and experienced judicial officer of the UP judicial service."

What is the Gyanvapi Masjid case?

A dispute arose surrounding the Gyanvapi Masjid in Uttar Pradesh after several Hindu women started to seek the right to pray inside the masjid on claims that there are statues of Hindu deities and gods present inside the mosque.

Five women had filed the petition seeking permission for daily worship of Hindu deities whose idols are claimed to be located on an outer wall of the Gyanvapi mosque. The Anjuman Intezamia Masjid Committee has said the Gyanvapi mosque is a Waqf property and has questioned the maintainability of the plea.

The claims of the Hindu side of the argument had intensified after a videography survey of the mosque, which reportedly showed a structure resembling a Shivling inside the mosque complex. The masjid administration, however, said that the structure is a fountain, not a shivling.

The dispute regarding the Gyanvapi Masjid dates back to 1991, when Swayambhu Jyotirlinga Bhagwan Vishweshwar filed a petition in the Varanasi court, seeking the right to pray inside the mosque. Since then, many have sought the right to offer their prayers to Hindu deities inside the Gyanvapi complex.

What’s next in the Gyanvapi case?

Since the Varanasi court has decided that the plea filed by the Hindu women is maintainable in the court, further hearings regarding the case can now be scheduled to decide whether they can offer prayers inside the mosque or not.

The Supreme Court, which had put the hearing regarding the Gyanvapi case on hold, had said, “Keeping the complexity and sensitivity of the matter in view, the civil suit before the civil judge in Varanasi shall be heard before a senior and experienced judicial officer of the UP judicial service."

The top court said it will wait for the Varanasi district court's order and adjourned the case to October 20. After the district court’s order, it is expected that the Supreme Court will hear the plea next month.

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