Himachal mosque row: Demolition of three storeys starts after permission from Waqf Board

Shimla, Oct 21 (PTI) The demolition of three unauthorised storeys of the disputed Sanjauli mosque in Shimla started on Monday after permission was granted by the Waqf Board, the president of the mosque’s managing committee Muhammad Latif said.

The demolition started with the removal of the roof amid tight police security, Latif told the PTI on Monday evening.

“The Waqf Board has granted the permission and allowed us to go ahead following which labourers were called and work to open the roof started today,” he added.

After receiving the October 5 order of the Municipal Commissioner (MC) Court directing the Waqf Board and president of Sanjauli Mosque Committee to demolish three storeys of the five-storey disputed structure, the same was communicated to the Waqf Board which gave the go-ahead, Latif told reporters here on Monday.

According to the MC Court order, the Waqf Board and the president of the mosque committee have to demolish the unauthorised portion of the mosque in two months at their own cost.

“Funding is the main issue as neither the public nor the government would give money to demolish the structure and the mosque committee has to bear the expenses from its limited resources”, said Latif who was part of the delegation which submitted the representation offering to demolish the unauthorised floors of the mosque on September 12, a day after 10 people were injured during a protest demanding demolition of a portion of the mosque.

Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu said that this is perhaps the first such example in the state where the people of the Muslim community have come forward to demolish the unauthorised mosque to maintain peace themselves.

He said people of all religions live here with respect and have the right to work in Himachal Pradesh.

Welcoming the move of the Sanjauli Mosque Committee to start the process of demolition of unauthorised stories of the mosque, Himachal Public Works Minister Vikramaditya Singh said, “It is a good gesture on the part of the mosque committee to abide by the decision of Municipal Commissioner’s court and voluntarily pull down the unauthorised portions.”

The move would help in maintaining social harmony and show the state in a good light which is essential for attracting tourists as tourism is the mainstay of the economy of the state, he told reporters here.

“The government is responsible to 70 lakh people to maintain social harmony and ensure that no activity which disturbs social harmony is allowed”, he said, adding that the move of the mosque committee was a significant step in this direction.

When Latif was asked about the announcement of the All Himachal Muslims Organisation (AHMO) to challenge the order in the court of the appellate authority and take the matter to the Supreme Court, he said, “We cannot stop anybody from going to the court but we have taken a big decision to offer to demolish the mosque to ensure peace and brotherhood in the state and we stand on our stance.”

Earlier, the AHMO state spokesperson Nazakat Ali Hashmi had in a statement said the persons who gave the representation had no authority to make any such submission and the orders passed by the MC Court were contrary to facts.

He had maintained that the land belonged to the Waqf Board, the mosque is 125 years old and the storeys are not illegal. The approval of maps is pending with the authorities but the MC Court ordered demolition of the storeys, he said.