City Magistrate Court in Saharanpur has ordered the demolition of the illegal mosque built in the DM office premises. On the complaint of Bajrang Dal leader, the court has also imposed a fine of about Rs 6.41 crore on the encroachers. There was also an allegation of commercial use of the mosque.
Order to demolish illegal mosque built in DM office, fine of Rs 6 crore
Saharanpur (Uttar Pradesh) [भारत] July 17 (ANI): The City Magistrate’s court in Saharanpur has ordered the demolition of an illegal mosque located within the District Magistrate (DM) office complex and imposed a fine of over Rs 6 crore on the encroachers.
The action followed a complaint filed by former Bajrang Dal provincial convenor Vikas Tyagi. Tyagi had alleged that an illegal mosque was constructed within the DM office complex, which is a sensitive area where confidential government functions take place. The complaint also alleged that the premises were being used for commercial purposes apart from religious activities. It was claimed that a post office was running from the site and several rooms were rented out to outsiders, the monthly rent for which was being collected by the mosque committee.
Taking cognizance of the case, the court of City Magistrate Kuldeep Singh, after a lengthy hearing, issued an order to demolish the illegal structure with immediate effect. A fine of about Rs 6.41 crore has also been imposed on the encroachers for illegal encroachment and misuse of government land. The administration said that this decisive action was taken because the security and confidentiality of the government office was being compromised. It is noteworthy that many illegally constructed religious structures have been demolished by the administration in different parts of Uttar Pradesh.
Such action was taken in Kushinagar also
In February last year, a part of the Madani Masjid in Uttar Pradesh’s Kushinagar district, which was reportedly built on ‘encroached’ land, was demolished with bulldozers earlier this month. The caretaker of the mosque has claimed that the Muslim community had purchased the land about a year ago for the purpose of building the mosque and there was no encroachment. The mosque committee challenged the demolition in the High Court and obtained a stay order until 8 February; However, with the order ending on 9 February, authorities began demolition operations.
Later, the Supreme Court issued notice to the concerned authorities of the Uttar Pradesh government on a contempt petition for demolishing part of the Madani Masjid in Kushinagar district of the state. The petition said that the demolition action on a mosque in Kushinagar was an alleged violation of the order dated November 13, 2024, which had banned demolition action across the country without prior notice and opportunity of hearing. (ANI)
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