By Ghazala Ahmad
Hundreds of Muslims in Madhya Pradesh’s Ujjain have gathered inside the historic Shahi Masjid to prevent its demolition, after residents reportedly stopped a midnight bulldozing operation amid heavy police deployment on Sunday.
The mosque has been marked for partial demolition as part of a road-widening project being undertaken ahead of the 2028 Simhastha Kumbh, a Hindu pilgrimage.
A local sitting inside the mosque as part of the protest, Tauqeer Khan told Maktoob that they have been doing this for over two weeks.
“People have unanimously decided to sit inside the mosque in large numbers, in shifts to save it from being demolished. All the time, there is a large number of people sitting inside the mosque, and all 5 prayers are happening as per schedule every day,” Khan said.
“Last night, the police force was increased, Rapid Action Force was deployed, and bulldozers were brought in with an intention to raze the mosque. However, when people gathered in large numbers inside and outside the mosque, the operations were halted”, he said.
The decision to sit inside the mosque in large numbers, in shifts, was taken by the eleven-member Masjid Numainda committee to oversee matters related to the mosque, as it has been disputed. The committee was constituted with the consent of the community’s responsible members.
Speaking to Maktoob, Prominent cleric of Indore, Mufti Junaid said Muslims had gathered at the mosque after the administration allegedly attempted to carry out the demolition despite the ongoing dispute.
“If this mosque is demolished, there are 28 other mosques that are coming in line and going to their targets, and it is arbitrary; they cannot keep demolishing mosques only because it is coming in the way of something”, Junaid said.
He said, “This is baseless and makes no sense that to establish one religion, you will completely demolish and erase the existence of other religions.”
This story was originally published in maktoobmedia.com. Read the full story here.
