ASI submits Gyanvapi scientific survey report in sealed cover to Varanasi court
VARANASI: The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) on Monday filed its report on the scientific survey of the Gyanvapi mosque premises ordered to determine if the 17th-century structure was built upon a pre-existing temple, Rajesh Mishra, the Uttar Pradesh government’s special counsel for the Shringar Gauri-Gyanavapi case said on Monday.
Mishra said the report in sealed cover was submitted before the Varanasi district court.
The Anjuman Intezamia Masjid Committee, which manages the 17th century mosque, asked the judge to ensure that the sealed report was not leaked. The report should be kept in a sealed cover and should not be given to any parties unless a personal undertaking on an affidavit is submitted that the report will not be leaked to anyone.
Akhlaque Ahmad, who appeared for the mosque committee, said the court will hear the matter on December 21.
The report was earlier scheduled to be submitted to the judge on December 11 but was deferred on the ASI’s request, which requested one more week because the superintending archaeologist (Sarnath) Avinash Mohanty was unwell.
On July 21, Varanasi district judge Ajaya Krishna Vishvesha ordered the ASI to conduct a comprehensive survey, using dating, excavation and ground penetrating radar (GPR) techniques, of the plot where the mosque stands, next to the Kashi Vishwanath Temple, holding that a scientific investigation was “necessary” for the “true facts” to come out.
The judge, however, excluded a section – where the Hindu side claims a Shivling was found during an earlier survey and the Muslims say the structure is part of a fountain – that has remained sealed since a Supreme Court order in May 2022.
The Gyanvapi mosque’s scientific survey, which started following the July 21 order, was subsequently suspended by the Supreme Court. It resumed amid tight security on August 4 after the Allahabad high court gave the go-ahead for the exercise.
The Allahabad high court held that a scientific investigation was necessary in the interest of justice and would benefit both parties in a dispute that has simmered on for decades, dismissing a petition filed by the mosque committee, which challenged the July 21 order.
The high court – which started hearing the case on July 25 after the Supreme Court temporarily suspended the survey on July 24 — took on record ASI’s undertaking that the agency will not carry out any excavation or harm the existing structure.
The district court is hearing a raft of petitions by Hindu groups and individuals who have demanded worshipping rights inside the mosque premises, claiming the presence of Hindu idols and deities within the complex that abuts the Kashi Vishwanath temple.
