New Delhi: The Centre has said in an affidavit filed in the Delhi High Court that it is necessary to remove the more than 100-year-old Qadeemi Masjid located in the Krishi Bhavan complex under the Central Vista redevelopment project. According to the government, the mosque stands on land where new Common Central Secretariat (CCS) buildings 4 and 5 are to be constructed.
A status report filed by the Land and Development Office (L&DO) said the Krishi Bhavan and Central Secretariat complex is earmarked for government administrative and public functions. The government has argued that maintaining a permanent religious structure in such a complex is not in keeping with the secular character of government property. The Centre also said the committee managing the mosque had been given only temporary possession for use under an agreement dated November 8, 1940. This does not confer ownership of the land or any legal right in the property, it said.
The affidavit has been filed in response to a petition by the committee that manages the Qadeemi Masjid. The committee has asked the court to restrain the removal of the mosque and to consider the possibility of protecting it during redevelopment. The committee says employees working in Krishi Bhavan and nearby government offices have offered namaz there for several decades.
During the hearing, Justice Anish Dayal questioned the Centre’s stand and asked whether there are any rules barring the provision of a place of worship for any community on government premises. The court asked the Centre’s counsel to convey the question to the additional solicitor general.
The mosque committee has been given time to respond to the government’s affidavit. The next hearing in the matter is scheduled for November 23. For now, no final judicial decision has been delivered on the removal of the mosque.
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