UP: Jama Masjid Uparkot built on public land, should be demolished, claims RTI applicant

Keshav Dev, who uploaded the document on the Jansunwai portal, claimed that the mosque had been built “on the remains of the revered Shiva temple of Hindus” while asking Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath to “run a bulldozer on Jama Masjid”. He said that based on the RTI reply, he will file public interest litigation in the Allahabad High Court in this regard.

Aligarh: A man in Uttar Pradesh's Aligarh has claimed that an RTI application has revealed that the Jama Masjid in Uparkot has been built illegally and demanded its demolition. Keshav Dev said the reply to his RTI he filed with the local Municipal Corporation on June 23, 2021, has revealed that the Jama Masjid of Uparkot “has been constructed on public land” saying “no one has any right on its land”.

Dev, who uploaded the document on the Jansunwai portal, claimed that the mosque had been built “on the remains of the revered Shiva temple of Hindus” while asking Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath to “run a bulldozer on Jama Masjid”. He said that based on the RTI reply, he will file public interest litigation in the Allahabad High Court in this regard.

Dev has also sent a complaint letter to the DM demanding the “encroachment on a public land at Uparkot Fort should be removed”. Former Mayor Shakuntala Bharti has said that the matter will be taken up with the Chief Minister. Dev said that according to Jahangirnama, the mosque had been built on public land by Sidha Khan, who ruled Aligarh on behalf of the Mughals. Khan, as per Dev, initially wanted to build a palace on a hilltop, which the locals resisted as it breached their privacy.

When the Mughal emperor visited the spot following a complaint by the locals, the local ruler told him that he was building a mosque, not a palace, Dev said. It is said that during the reign of Mohammad Shah (1719-1728) the construction of the Jama Masjid was started in 1724. It took four years and in 1728 the mosque was completed.