The Municipal Corporation court has given a final verdict regarding the mosque located in the Sanjauli area of Shimla, the capital of Himachal Pradesh. The entire mosque has been declared illegal and ordered to be completely demolished. Earlier on 5 October 2024, the court ordered the demolition of the upper three floors of the mosque. The court of Shimla Municipal Corporation Commissioner Bhupinder Atri on Saturday issued an order to completely demolish the Sanjauli Masjid, calling the entire construction illegal after hearing.
The decision came at a time when no strong documents could be submitted by the Waqf Board to prove the ownership of the mosque land in the court. Also, no valid map related to mosque construction or approval of the Municipal Corporation was also presented. Earlier, the court had ordered the demolition of the upper three floors of the mosque on 5 October 2024, but the mosque committee could not take action in time.
Court took a tough stand on illegal construction
In the hearing held on Saturday, the Municipal Corporation court also considered the remaining two floors of the mosque illegal and ordered them to be demolished. During the hearing, the lawyer of the Waqf Board argued that the mosque exists before 1947 and is reconstructive. On this, the court questioned that if it was already present, then why was the municipal corporation approval for new construction? The whole mosque was built by keeping the rules at stare. After a quarter of a quarter of an hour, the court reserved the verdict and after one o’clock in the afternoon, Municipal Corporation Commissioner Bhupinder Atri ruled. It clearly stated that the entire mosque is illegal, it should be dropped.
Masjid committee could not take action on time
On 5 October 2024, the Municipal Corporation court ordered the demolition of the upper three floors of the mosque, which was to be completed within two months. But the work could not be completed by the Masjid Committee within the time limit. Later, twice more time was sought, but still a floor and pillar work is incomplete.
Case revealed after a clash last year
The case of Sanjauli Mosque came into the limelight when a clash between two communities in Maliyana region of Shimla on 29 August 2024, in which one person was injured. After this, tension situation arose outside the Sanjauli mosque on 1 September and the issue of illegal construction arose. On 11 September 2024, Hindu organizations protested against the construction of the mosque. The protesters broke the barricade and traveled towards the mosque, on which the police had to lathi -charged. Many protesters and police personnel were injured during this period. After this, the Municipal Corporation Court showed seriousness in this case and started investigation.
