Aligarh: Amid the Sambhal, Baghpat, Badaun, Firozabad and Bareilly row, a new temple-mosque controversy has emerged in Aligarh where it has been claimed that the historic Uparkot Jama Masjid was a temple earlier.
An RTI activist, who filed a suit in the Civil Judge's Court on Monday, said earlier there was a Shiva temple at the mosque complex. He demanded the eviction of the mosque and the restoration of the Shiva temple. Accepting his petition, the court has agreed to hear the matter on February 15.
Pandit Keshav Dev, the activist who is also a leader of the Anti-Corruption Army, claimed there used to be an imposing big fort of Hindu kings in the Uparkot area. Jama Masjid was established in its place based on forged documents. He obtained information through an RTI query to the Archaeological Department and the Municipal Corporation that there was a Buddhist stupa, Jain temple or Shiva temple at this place.
To his RTI query, the municipal corporation replied that the mosque is built on public land and no record is available regarding its construction. The corporation also clarified that no person has ownership of the mosque.
The dispute comes at a time when the number of similar cases is on the rise in Uttar Pradesh. The Jama Masjid in Sambhal was claimed to be built on the remains of Harihar Temple. A court-mandated survey was also conducted on the complex. Claims about temples under ancient mosques were also made in Badaun and Baghpat.
Meanwhile, the Supreme Court has recently ordered the lower courts not to pass any survey order in matters related to temple-mosque disputes without explicit permission. The court said the petitions on the Places of Worship Act, 1991 should be settled first so that other disputed claims can be clarified.
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