In Uttar Pradesh’s Sambhal, the Allahabad High Court on Saturday rejected a plea to halt the demolition of a mosque, an adjacent 30,000-sq-ft marriage hall, and a hospital allegedly built on government land. The petition had been filed by Masjid Sharif Gausul Wara Rawa Buzurg and its caretaker, Minjar. The single-judge bench of Justice Dinesh Pathak directed the mosque committee to file an appeal before the trial court instead.
Earlier, on Thursday, the Sambhal administration demolished the mosque and marriage hall in Raya Buzurg village using bulldozers under heavy police deployment. Both structures, constructed roughly a decade ago, were identified as illegal encroachments in a land survey. This marks the second mosque-related demolition controversy in Sambhal within four months.
During the hearing, the mosque committee submitted land ownership documents. Advocate Arvind Kumar Tripathi contended that the demolition began without a formal order, which was later issued after the court’s intervention. He also claimed the administration deliberately chose October 2, coinciding with Gandhi Jayanti and Dussehra, for the demolition, raising fears of potential riots or accidents.
The authorities argued that the marriage hall was constructed on former pond land, while part of the mosque stood on government property. The mosque committee stated that they had voluntarily started dismantling the encroached portion. After considering both sides, the High Court dismissed the petition, advising the committee to pursue remedies at the trial court level.
