Hindu party files caveat in SC to be heard in Bhojshala appeal

A Hindu party has filed a caveat in the Supreme Court, seeking to be heard in any appeals related to the Bhojshala temple dispute case following the Madhya Pradesh high court's ruling.

A Hindu party on Friday filed a caveat in the Supreme Court, saying no orders be passed without hearing it on any appeal against the Madhya Pradesh high court order in the Bhojshala complex dispute case.

"Let no order be made in the above matter without notice to the undersigned," the caveat, filed by Jitendra Singh 'Vishen' through advocate Barun Kumar Sinha, said.

Vishen was the sixth petitioner in the matter in which a high court bench in Indore on Friday gave the decision.

High Court Ruling on Bhojshala Temple Dispute

In a huge win for the Hindu side, the Madhya Pradesh high court declared that the disputed Bhojshala complex in Dhar district was a temple dedicated to Goddess Saraswati, and the Centre and the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) can decide on its administration and management.

The high court also quashed an April 7, 2003, order of the ASI that allowed Muslims to offer namaaz inside the Bhojshala complex every Friday.

The high court bench hearing the case also said that the Muslim community, which called the 11th-century ASI-protected monument 'Kamal Maula mosque', may approach the Madhya Pradesh government for allotment of separate land in the district for the construction of a mosque.

Court Observations and ASI Survey

In its much-awaited verdict in the Bhojshala temple-Kamal Maula mosque complex dispute case, the court observed that there were indications of a Sanskrit teaching centre and a temple of Goddess Saraswati existing in the Bhojshala complex.

The high court delivered the verdict on five petitions and one writ appeal related to the matter.

"The religious character of the disputed complex of Bhojshala-Kamal Maula mosque is established as a temple of Goddess Saraswati," the high court said.

The court, citing the ASI's scientific survey report on the disputed monument and other documents on record, said the structure was associated with King Bhoj of the Parmar dynasty, a Rajput kingdom that ruled the Malwa region of present-day central India between the 9th and 14th centuries.

Future Considerations and Historical Context

The high court said that if the Maulana Kamaluddin Welfare Society, a party to the case from the Muslim side, applies for land allotment for the construction of a mosque in Dhar district, the state government can consider it in accordance with legal provisions.

After the controversy arose over the Bhojshala, the ASI issued an order on April 7, 2003, allowing Hindus to worship at the complex every Tuesday and permitting Muslims to offer namaaz at the site every Friday.

The Hindu side challenged the order in court, seeking exclusive rights to worship at the complex.

The Hindu side considered the Bhojshala to be a temple dedicated to Vagdevi (Goddess Saraswati), while the Muslim side called it the Kamal Maula mosque.

Jains too claimed the temple complex as their own

A petitioner from the Jain community claimed that the complex was a medieval Jain temple and gurukul (traditional learning centre).

The ASI, after conducting a scientific survey of the monument in 2024 following a high court order, indicated in its over 2,000-page report that a massive structure dating back to the reign of the Parmar kings of Dhar predated the mosque, and that the current disputed structure was built using repurposed temple components.

The Hindu side claimed that coins, sculptures and inscriptions found by the ASI during its survey proved that the complex was originally a temple.

However, the Muslim side argued that the ASI's survey report was "biased" and prepared to "support" the claims of the Hindu petitioners.

Refuting this claim, the ASI told the court that the survey was carried out with the help of experts, including three from the Muslim community.

The high court had ordered the ASI to conduct a scientific survey of the disputed complex on March 11, 2024.

The ASI began the survey on March 22 and, after 98 days, submitted its report to the high court on July 15.