A day after Prime Minister Narendra Modi handed over a ceremonial chadar to be offered at the Ajmer Sharif Dargah, a plea has been filed in court to temporarily stop the offering. The petition claims that the Dargah was built over the remains of an old Shiva temple.
Hindu Sena President Vishnu Gupta, who filed the original suit, submitted the application. The chadar, handed over to Union Minister Kiren Rijiju on January 2, is meant to be offered at the Dargah on the Urs of Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti.
In the petition, Gupta argued that sending the chadar to the “disputed” structure while the case is still in court undermines judicial independence and the right to a fair hearing. He said, “Giving any political legitimacy to the disputed structure by sending a chadar will not only harm the court process but will also affect the court’s independence, making the case meaningless.”
PM Modi has been sending a chadar to the Ajmer Sharif Dargah every year since becoming Prime Minister in 2014. This marks the tenth time he has made the offering. On Thursday, he handed over the chadar to Kiren Rijiju for the Urs celebrations.
Gupta’s main lawsuit claims that the Dargah was built by converting an old Hindu temple. He is seeking an Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) survey and the reconstruction of the Bhagwan Shri Sankatmochan Mahadev Temple after removing the current structure. The petition also claims that there is a Shiva Linga beneath the underground passage within the Dargah complex.
The matter will be heard in court on January 4 at 10 AM by Civil Judge Manmohan Chandel.
This story was originally published in theobserverpost.com.
