The Supreme Court has ordered that no invasive work be undertaken by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) at the Gyanvapi mosque complex till 5 pm on Wednesday. It also instructed the Anjuman Intezamia Masjid (AIM) of the Gyanvapi mosque to approach the Allahabad High Court against the Varanasi district court order on ASI survey before the said date.
Agreeing to hear a plea moved by the mosque committee during the day, Chief Justice of India D Y Chandrachud said: "Let there be a status quo for the time being. No excavation, no invasive method until we hear it.” He also asked Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, who was representing the Uttar Pradesh government, to inform the ASI team of the same.
"We permit the petitioners to move the high court in the exercise of its jurisdiction under Article 227 of the Constitution or the appropriate proceedings to challenge the order of the learned district judge of Varanasi. Having regard to the fact that the order of the district court was pronounced at 4.30 pm on July 21 and the survey is in the process of being carried out, we are of the view that some breathing time should be granted to the petitioners to move the high court, seeking appropriate reliefs."
"We direct that the impugned order of the district judge shall not be enforced till 5 pm on July 26. In the meantime, should petitioners move the high court with the petition or application under Article 227, the registrar-judicial shall ensure that it is placed before an appropriate bench according to the roster of work so that it can be heard before the order of the status quo, which has been granted by this court, comes to an end," ordered a bench comprising Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud and Justices J B Pardiwala and Manoj Misra.
Mehta told the court that there is no excavation or invasive method for the time being. "The ASI is doing measurement, photography and radar imaging," he informed the court. He added that not even a brick has been moved or plans to be moved for at least a week.
Taking Mehta's submission into account, the SC said: "It appears that ASI is not contemplating carrying out any excavation in pursuance of the order. We record the statement to the extent that no excavation at the site is contemplated at this stage for a period of one week until next week Monday," the CJI said.
Senior counsel Huzefa Ahmadi, appearing for the Gyanvapi mosque management committee, had argued that it had earlier stayed the carbon dating of the structure, claimed as "shivling" by the Hindu side. "What is the tearing hurry, this place has been a mosque since the 1500s? there must be a status quo order," Ahmadi tells Supreme Court.
Senior advocate Shyam Divan, who appeared for the Hindu side, tells Supreme Court that let there should be an exercise of caution on the issue and it must go to the High Court. "Solicitor General has already said no excavations will be carried out. Court is seized of the matter and when a status quo order is made by Supreme Court it continues indefinitely," he argued.
Meanwhile, the lawyers of the Hindu said that their legal team will oppose this. "The truth of Gyanvapi will only come out after the survey of ASI. The high court will decide the matter unaffected by any observations of the Supreme Court, Allahabad HC will decide the matter on its own merit," they added.
The apex court's order came at a time when a 30-member team of the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) was inside the mosque complex to carry out the survey.
