MP High Court Quashes ASI Order Allowing Namaz At Bhojshala Complex
Court cites historical and ASI evidence while ruling on Bhojshala religious character.
The Madhya Pradesh High Court on Friday ruled that the Bhojshala–Kamal Maula Mosque complex in Dhar district is a temple dedicated to Goddess Saraswati, while also observing that members of the Muslim community may approach the state government for alternative land to construct a mosque. The decision, reported by Bar and Bench, marks a significant development in the long-standing dispute over the religious character of the site.
A division bench comprising Justices Vijay Kumar Shukla and Alok Awasthi held that the religious identity of the disputed structure is that of a Hindu temple. The Court quashed a 2003 order issued by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) that had allowed regulated worship by both Hindu and Muslim communities at the site. It also struck down the portion of the order that restricted Hindu worship rights within the complex.
In its ruling, the Court stated that the ASI’s notification permitting Muslim prayers and limiting Hindu worship rights could not be sustained. It noted that while the site is a protected monument under law, its religious character is that of a temple dedicated to Goddess Saraswati. The Court further observed that the state must ensure proper management and preservation of the monument, while maintaining law and order at the site.
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The bench relied on historical records, archaeological findings, and ASI reports in reaching its conclusion, stating that the location had historically been a centre of Sanskrit learning associated with a Saraswati temple. It also referenced the Supreme Court’s Ayodhya judgment as guiding precedent in evaluating complex historical and archaeological disputes. An ASI survey report submitted in 2024 had indicated that several architectural elements of the structure appeared to have been reused from earlier temples.
The Court was hearing multiple petitions seeking restoration of Hindu worship rights and challenging the 2003 ASI notification that permitted namaz within the complex. The Supreme Court had earlier, in May 2024, declined to stay the ASI survey but directed that its findings not be acted upon, while in January this year it ordered maintenance of status quo at the site pending final adjudication of the dispute.
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