The Delhi High Court on Wednesday, September 3 dismissed a petition filed by Save India NGO, which sought the removal of alleged illegal encroachments on the Yamuna floodplains — including a mazhar and three dargahs.
The NGO is affiliated with Hindu right wing groups. Questioning the bonafides of the organisation, Chief Justice D. K. Upadhyaya raised concern over selective targeting and asked, “How do you selectively bring forth these petitions of dargahs allegedly encroaching? Do you not see other encroachments? Why are you identifying only mazars?”
A bench comprising the Chief Justice and justice Tushar Rao Gedela orally said, “We are on your bona fide… This must be the fifth or sixth petition entertained by this bench where you’re seeking the removal of mazhars.”
The bench further said, “Please let us be clear, do not take it to that dimension… We are not even suggesting remotely that this structure is lawful… but why specifically mazars? If you actually want to serve the public, there are many other ways… not only by seeking the removal of such structures. Please ask your foundation to do something more than what they are doing… Please advise your foundation to do some better public work.”
The court asked concerned authorities to decide on the foundation’s representation expeditiously and disposed the matter. The petition was filed on behalf of Save India Foundation by its founder Preet Singh, who claims that the organisation works to raise issues for the enforcement of citizens’ rights. However, the man has been accused of multiple cases of spreading hate against Muslim community.
Singh is currently out on bail in connection with a hate speech. In 2022, the Save India foundation and Singh were booked by the Delhi police for hate speech delivered at the ‘Hindu Mahapanchayat’ in Burari.
He was also the organiser of a 2021 event at Jantar Mantar where anti-Muslim slogans were allegedly raised. In the current Public Interest Litigation (PIL) Singh mentioned three dargahs and one mazar as unauthorised encroachments, alleging that “a large chunk of land belonging to the government has been encroached upon by land mafia through pseudo-religious structures.”
As per the petition, , the mazar is located in Budh Vihar Phase 2, while the three dargahs are situated at Rohtak Road, Seelampur, and Burari.
Past instance of PIL against dargahs
The PIL in Delhi High Court is one of the many instances where the legitimacy of dargahs in India has been questioned. In February 2024, a right-wing Hindu group in Rajasthan‘s Ajmer claimed that Ajmer Dargah was actually a Hindu temple.
Rajvardhan Singh Parmar, president of the Hindu right-wing ‘Maharana Pratap Sena’ in Ajmer said that Ajmer Dargah is a “sacred Hindu temple”. He also held a press conference recently, making similar claims. This came shortly after a Hindu right-wing blog website Hindu Post publishing an article titled ‘Moinuddin Chisti’s Dargah complex at Ajmer is built atop destroyed Hindu & Jain mandirs?’
“Any Hindu visiting Khwaja Moinuddin Chisti’s Dargah at Ajmer is actually celebrating the desecration and destruction of an ancient Mahadeva temple. Not just the tomb, but in fact the entire complex is built atop remains of Hindu and Jain temples demolished by Muslim invaders,” the article read.
Parmar claimed that the earlier Congress administration dismissed their concerns as “anti-Hindu sentiment” and failed to address them despite repeated attempts by group members. He emphasised that Rajasthanis are in favor of this demand, and just like Ayodhya Babri and Gyanvapi in Varanasi, the letter requests an detailed investigation into Ajmer Dargah.
Brief history of Ajmer Dargah
The Ajmer Sharif Dargah, nestled at the base of Taragarh hill, is a revered Sufi tomb dedicated to Khawaja Moinuddin Chishti.
Located near the central railway station, its iconic white marble dome was built in 1532. Adorned with intricate designs and gold accents, the Dargah welcomes visitors of all faiths.
The history of the Ajmer Sharif Dargah is steeped in mysticism and reverence. Khawaja Moinuddin Chishti, born in 13th-century Sanjar (modern-day Iran), later made Ajmer his home, drawing spiritual inspiration from the writings of renowned Sunni Hanbali scholar and mystic, ʿAbdallāh Anṣārī.
Court hands over UP dargah to Hindus
A court in Uttar Pradesh also handed over a dargah to a right wing organisation. A decades-old plea filed by a group of Muslims seeking ownership of a land that contains a tomb and the dargah of Sufi saint Sheikh Badruddin Shah was dismissed earlier this week by the Baghpat district court in Uttar Pradesh.
In addition to rejecting the plea, the court, presided over by Civil Judge Shivam Dwivedi, directed the Muslim side to turn over the dargah to the Hindus.
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