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Gyanvapi Mosque Case: Archaeological Survey of India's survey report made available to both sides

Gyanvapi Mosque Case: Archaeological Survey of India's survey report made available to both sides

Gyanvapi mosque

The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) report on the Gyanvapi Mosque complex will be made available to both the Hindu and the Muslim sides, a district court in Uttar Pradesh's Varanasi said on Wednesday (Jan 24) in the significant development in the ongoing case.

Last year in December, ASI submitted its 1,000-page "scientific survey" report on the mosque complex to the district judge in a sealed cover.

The court said in the latest hearing that both parties shall give an affidavit to keep the report with them and won't make it public.

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Advocate Vishnu Shankar Jain, who is representing the Hindu side, said, "The court listened to both sides today. After hearing both sides, an agreement was reached that a certified copy of ASI's report be made available to both sides."

He added, "As soon as the court passes the order, our legal team will apply for the certified copy."

Gyanvapi Mosque Case

The Gyanvapi Mosque is located in Varanasi, a holy city and one of the most popular tourist destinations in the north Indian state of Uttar Pradesh.

It was constructed by Aurangzeb in 1669 after demolishing an ancient temple of Lord Shiva , claims the Hindu side.

ASI survey of the site was launched after the Allahabad High Court upheld the Varanasi court order, stating that the survey was "necessary in the interest of justice". It added that the survey would benefit both sides in the dispute.

After the court's order, the ASI carried out a scientific survey of the Gyanvapi complex premises, located next to the famous Kashi Vishwanath temple.

The main aim of the survey was to determine or not whether the mosque was constructed over a Hindu temple.

(With inputs from agencies)