Tension gripped Uttarakhand’s Mussoorie on Saturday after the local administration demolished a prayer structure inside a nearly 200-year-old cemetery in the Laxmanpuri area, describing it as an encroachment on municipal land. The action triggered protests by members of the Muslim community, who blocked the Mussoorie-Dehradun highway and raised slogans against the administration.
The protest caused traffic disruption for some time before police and officials persuaded demonstrators to clear the road. Heavy police deployment was made in the area to maintain law and order.
Community Says It Was a Funeral Prayer Site, Not a Mosque
Members of the Muslim community said the demolished structure was not a mosque used for daily prayers. According to them, it was a tin-roofed shelter where funeral prayers (Janaza Namaz) were offered before burials at the cemetery.
They claimed the site had been in religious use for nearly 200 years and that generations of their ancestors were buried there.
Protesters questioned why the authorities had not raised any objection to the structure for decades if the land belonged to the government. They argued that the administration should have held discussions with the community before taking action in a matter involving religious sentiments.
This story was originally published in theobserverpost.com. Read the full story here.
