News
A Blow to Religious Freedom in India: Muslims Had to Tear Down Part of Their Historic Mosque with Their Own Hands for a Hindu Pilgrimage Road
Part of Ujjain’s Shahi Masjid, Registered as Waqf, Was Removed for the Simhastha Festival and Its Minaret Fell onto the Mosque; Community Representatives Say More Mosques Are in Line
India · Ujjain |
The Minaret’s Fall
Reported by the source
The roughly 37-metre minaret of the historic Shahi Masjid in Ujjain, in the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh, fell onto the mosque on Thursday, 1 October, while it was being dismantled. According to Maktoob, the dome and the first floor were damaged; according to the mosque committee, two floors were left unusable. No one was injured. [3][5][4]
Community position as reported by the source
Ujjain’s city Qazi, Khaleeq ur Rahman, said: “Today we are deeply sad and disheartened. What happened is unfortunate and will be very difficult for us to forget.” According to the Qazi, the community was doing the work itself and helping the administration to bring down the minaret when a belt on the machinery brought in by the administration broke. He called on the community to stay calm and said the damage would soon be repaired. [3]
Community position as reported by the source
The mosque committee said it had asked the district collector for eight days to carry out the work with due care, that the request was refused and that the work was rushed, and it called for an inquiry. A resident told Maktoob that the community had offered to take the minaret down by hand, that the administration refused, citing “pressure from above”, and called what happened “pure betrayal”. [4][3]
Official position as reported by the source
Ujjain’s district collector, Raushan Kumar Singh, said the damage was accidental and that there had been no intention to harm the building, and he urged residents not to believe communal rumours on social media. According to the Free Press Journal, the belt of a crane snapped while the minaret was being removed. [5][6]
The Pilgrimage Road and the Court Case
Reported by the source
The Shahi Masjid stands at Chatri Chowk, almost opposite the Mahakaleshwar Temple, which Hindus hold sacred. Ahead of the Hindu pilgrimage festival Simhastha Kumbh in 2028, Ujjain Municipal Corporation is widening the road to 15 metres, and the part of the mosque facing the road lies within the alignment. The corporation served notices on 14, 25 and 27 August and issued its final order on 1 September. [1][7]
Community position as reported by the source
According to the mosque’s imam, Mohammad Ibrahim, the mosque is registered as waqf property and dates back to 1390, some 636 years. Other reports describe the structure as about a century old; the court did not establish the date. The imam said the community had earlier given up its shops for development but could not give up the mosque, and community representatives proposed widening the road on the opposite side. [7][1]
Judicial finding
The Madhya Pradesh High Court dismissed the mosque committee’s petitions on 9 September. It held that the corporation had followed the required procedure and that the constitutional guarantees of equality, religious freedom and property had not been violated. Noting that portions of ten temples and one mosque on the same road had already been removed and that action had been taken against about 80 religious sites in the city, it rejected the claim that the mosque was being singled out. [1][2]
The Community’s Resistance and the Agreement
Reported by the source
On the night of 27 September, police and the Rapid Action Force were deployed and heavy machinery was brought in. When Muslims gathered inside and around the mosque, the demolition was halted. Tauqeer Khan, one of the protesters, said people had been sitting inside the mosque in shifts for two weeks and that all five daily prayers were being held as usual. [2][7]
Community position as reported by the source
Mufti Junaid of Indore said that 28 more mosques in Ujjain were in line, and that the Takhiya Mosque had been demolished suddenly after assurances that it would not be. In his words, it “makes no sense that to establish one religion, you will completely demolish and erase the existence of other religions.” [2]
Reported by the source
After an agreement reached overnight, the community began removing the part within the alignment with its own hands on 28 September. Stones were thrown during protests that day, and police used batons and tear gas. According to the city Qazi, the section to be removed under the agreement is about one metre deep and does not affect the main prayer hall. According to Maktoob, the community gave up this section and the minaret, which is to be rebuilt elsewhere on the terrace so that the temple behind it can be seen. [1][3][5]
Official position as reported by the source
Ujjain’s Superintendent of Police, Pradeep Sharma, said the Muslim community and the mosque committee were themselves demolishing the portion, in full consensus and cooperation and with Simhastha 2028 in mind. [1]
Repairs and DinAtlas’s Assessment
Reported by the source
Nine of those detained during the events were remanded in judicial custody until 12 October. The roads around the mosque reopened after seven days. Repairs, including to the roof, are progressing quickly, and the mosque committee is bearing the entire cost. Its president, Abdul Mannan, warned against fraudsters collecting donations in the mosque’s name through barcodes; the committee has launched no appeal. [6][4]
DinAtlas interpretation
DinAtlas assesses what happened as a grave violation of religious freedom. The partial demolition, for the road of a Hindu pilgrimage festival, of a mosque registered as waqf where the community has prayed for generations; the community having to take its own mosque apart with its own hands after losing in court and under police cordon; and the moving of the minaret so that the temple can be seen, run counter to the inviolability of places of worship and to equal treatment of religions. That community representatives say further mosques are in line and that earlier assurances were broken shows that Muslims experience the events as part of a pattern of hostility towards Islam and towards Muslims. The court, for its part, found the action not arbitrary, noting that temples on the same road were affected too; the inquiry the community has asked for and the rebuilding of the minaret will be where equal treatment is put to the test. [1][2][3][4]
Related pages
Sources7
Each paragraph shows what kind of statement it is and which source it rests on.
Ujjain Shahi Masjid Row: Why Is The Community Removing A Portion For Road Widening?
MP: Ujjain Muslims sit inside historic Shahi Masjid to stop demolition amid heavy police deployment
Ujjain Shahi Masjid’s dome, first floor damaged during minaret demolition; admin blames ‘machinery’, Muslims allege hasty action
Ujjain Shahi Masjid minaret collapses during work; mosque committee alleges police, administration rushed demolition
Ujjain Shahi Masjid Minar Removal: Part Of Mosque Damaged After Minar Collapses During Road Widening Work; Collector Appeals Against Rumours
Ujjain Shahi Masjid Repair Fraudsters Seek Donations Through Barcodes, Committee Warns Of FIR
Ujjain mosque demolition paused after overnight Muslim community protest