Hindu idols and 1710 relics were reportedly found during the 98-day survey conducted by the Archeological Survey of India (ASI) at the Bhojshala/ Kamal Maula Mosque complex in Madhya Pradesh’s Dhar district.
The ASI survey was conducted as part of the March 11 order by the Madhya Pradesh High Court. The Muslim side went to the Supreme Court which refused to stay the survey but cautioned no action will be taken once the survey results are out.
In the survey, 39 out of the 1710 relics were reported broken. The ASI is expected to submit its report on July 4, however, it might ask for an extension, the Times of India reported.
Idols found on last day: Hindu side
The Hindu Front for Justice representative Gopal Sharma claimed that on the last day of the survey, nearly seven broken pieces of pillar were found during the survey,
“One of them was the broken idol of a goddess, and the rest are broken pieces of a pillar. Only the neck and face of the idol were found,” Sharma was quoted by TOI.
SC guidelines violated, claims Muslim side
Waqar Sadiq, `Shahar Qazi’ or head cleric of Dhar city, alleged while talking to reporters that the SC guidelines were “grossly violated by the ASI team”.
The high court had said that no damage should be caused and there should be no excavation without the collector’s permission, but these directives were ignored, he claimed after attending the namaz.
When contacted, ASI’s local conservation assistant Prashant Patankar said he was not authorised to comment on the issue.
On April 7, 2003, ASI ordered that Hindus can worship inside the Bhojshala complex every Tuesday while Muslims can offer namaz on Fridays. Hindus believe that Bhojshala is a temple dedicated to Goddess Vagdevi (Saraswati). Meanwhile, the Muslim community claims it has always been a mosque.
