Mathura, Kashi claims worry Sunni waqf panel

AYODHYA: Amidst the Kashi and Mathura shrines being dragged into fresh legal dispute, just months after the apex court’s Ayodhya verdict, Sunni Central Waqf Board expressed concern over moves to reclaim religious structures and sought strict implementation of Places of Worship Act, 1991, which was reiterated by Supreme Court in its November-2019 verdict on the Ayodhya title suit.
In an exclusive chat with TOI, chairman of Sunni Central Waqf Board, Zufar Farooqui, who is also president of the Indo Islamic Cultural Foundation, said, “The Places of Worship Act aims to freeze the status of any place of worship as it existed on August 15, 1947. And the Supreme Court too invoked this law in its Ayodhya verdict while mandating construction of temple at Ramjanmabhoomi premises to preempt new claims by any group.”
Talking about recent litigation to reclaim the Gyanvapi masjid in Varanasi and Shahi Eidgah in Mathura, Farooqui said, “The Sunni Waqf Board will be dealing with the court cases, but since the Places of Worship Act is in place, the law must be implemented to stop attempts to change status of mosques in India.” Farooqui, who’s also president of the Trust mandated to construct a mosque in Ayodhya in lieu of the Babri mosque, said: “We are working on a war footing to begin construction of the mosque in Ayodhya.”