The Supreme Court on Friday issued a notice in the dispute over a private well near the Shahi Jama Masjid in Sambhal and ordered that the status quo be maintained regarding the site. The court directed that no action be taken concerning the well without its permission and instructed authorities to file a status report within two weeks, reports PTI.
A bench of Chief Justice Sanjiv Khanna and Justice Sanjay Kumar was hearing a plea filed by the mosque’s management committee. The plea challenged a November 19, 2024, order by a Sambhal Senior Division Civil Judge, which allowed the appointment of an advocate commissioner to survey the mosque. The committee argued that the survey had resulted in violence and loss of life, prompting urgent intervention from the Supreme Court.
Senior Advocate Huzefa Ahmadi, representing the mosque committee, said that the historical significance of the well, asserting that the mosque had been drawing water from it for generations.
Ahmadi also expressed concerns over a notice referring to the site as “Hari Mandir” and plans for religious activities at the well. Chief Justice Khanna assured that no such activities would be allowed and ordered the authorities to file a status report.
The bench stressed that the status quo must be maintained and that no notices regarding the well would be acted upon.
Advocate Vishnu Shankar Jain, representing the Hindu side, argued that the well is outside the mosque’s purview and has historically been used for worship. Ahmadi countered that part of the well lies within the mosque premises, citing a Google Maps image to support the claim.
The mosque management had filed the plea in response to the local court’s order, which it contended had been issued without a hearing on the same day it was filed. The committee expressed concerns over a second survey of the mosque, which it said led to violence and fatalities.
“It was in view of a second survey having been undertaken which led to violence and loss of life that the captioned SLP was preferred under the extraordinary circumstances,” it said.