India’s Supreme Court Intervenes in Mosque-Temple Controversy

India’s Supreme Court on Saturday, November 30, addressed escalating tensions surrounding the Shahi Jama Masjid in Sambhal, Uttar Pradesh, after a trial court ordered a survey of the mosque, claimed by Hindu groups to be built on a demolished temple site, VOA reported yesterday.

This order led to violent protests, resulting in the deaths of six Muslims when police intervened.

The Supreme Court instructed the trial court to halt its order until the Allahabad High Court reviews the case. Critics, including former Supreme Court Justice Madan Lokur, argue that the trial court’s actions violate the Places of Worship Act, 1991, which preserves the status of religious sites as of India’s independence in 1947.

Legal experts and social activists express alarm over the increasing willingness of courts to entertain petitions from Hindu groups claiming historical rights over Islamic sites. These incidents highlight a pattern where Hindu nationalist groups attempt to reclaim sites they assert were originally Hindu temples, often leading to communal violence.