Burhanuddin Rabbani, chairman of the High Peace Council and former President of Afghanistan who met Prime minister Manmohan Singh over lunch in New Delhi on Thursday and later had delegation level talks, has expressed desire to perform Friday prayers at the historic Jama Masjid.
The Shahi Imam also said he will soon seek an appointment to meet Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah, saying the meeting was necessary in order to safeguard Hindus, Muslims, democracy and secularism in the country.
Severing ties with the ruling Samajwadi Party in Uttar Pradesh, Shahi Imam of Jama Masjid Maulana Syed Ahmed Bukhari has sent resignations of his supporters, including his member of Legislative Assembly son-in-law, from all positions in the state government.
Interpol has issued a Red Corner Notice against fugitive gangster Shariq Sata, the alleged mastermind behind the November 2024 violence in Uttar Pradesh's Sambhal, following a request from the Uttar Pradesh Police via the CBI.
With the arrest of six suspected Indian Mujahideen men the Delhi police have claimed a breakthrough in three terror cases -- the German Bakery blast in Pune, the Jama Masjid shootout and blast in the capital and the Chinnaswamy stadium blasts in Bengaluru.
Foreigners wearing mini skirts and entering Jama Masjid prompted Indian Mujahideen co-founder Yasin Bhaktal and his aides to commit a terror strike at the historic mosque in September 2010, the Delhi police told a court.
Construction of a mosque near the historic Jama Masjid was on Friday stopped by the Delhi high court which directed the local civic authority to immediately hand over the site to the ASI to ascertain if there were any remains of Mughal era structure there.
"I will be back some day." This is how the Taiwanese victim of the Jama Masjid firing incident summed up his emotions as he prepared to return to his country. Chiang Ko, who was shot in the stomach and was hospitalised for over a week at the Lok Nayak Jai Prakash hospital, left the country on Monday, but expressed hope that the culprits will be identified soon. The crew of TVBS channel was fired upon by unidentified gunmen on September 19, injuring two of them.
A red alert has been sounded across New Delhi after the incident in which the two bikers are said to have fired 7-8 rounds on the stationary vehicle adjacent to gate number three of the mosque and 100 metres away from the house of Shahi Imam Ahmed Bukhari at around 11.30 am.
Efforts to resolve three major religious site disputes in Uttar Pradesh - Gyanvapi, Sri Krishna Janmabhoomi-Shahi Eidgah, and Sambhal Shahi Jama Masjid - through out-of-court settlements have failed, with all parties insisting on judicial adjudication.
Firing a fresh salvo, Samajwadi Party leader Azam Khan on Monday challenged the Sahi Imam of Delhi's Jama Masjid to contest and win the election for the post of mayor from Moradabad. Khan said if Syed Ahmad Bukhari did not forfeit his deposits, he will seek retirement from active politics. "I challenge Bukhari to contest an election for the post of mayor from Moradabad and win it. If he does not forfeit his deposits, I will quit politics," Khan said.
Muslims in Sambhal, Uttar Pradesh, observed Alvida Jumma, the last Friday prayers of Ramadan, at Shahi Jama Masjid amidst tight security arrangements. Devotees prayed for peace and harmony across the country as they prepare to celebrate Eid.
The city police on Wednesday told a Delhi court that six of the seven Indian Mujahideen operatives arrested recently have confessed about their involvement in the September 2010 blast near Jama Masjid.
Syed Ahmed Bukhari, the shahi imam of Delhi's Jama Masjid, on Monday accused the ruling Samajawadi Party in Uttar Pradesh of taking late action in the Kosi Kalan communal riots and said he will give a second thought on supporting the party in the forthcoming municipal elections and 2014 general polls.
The Supreme Court ruled that a confession statement cannot be the sole basis for detaining an individual under the National Security Act, quashing the preventive detention of Mulla Afroz and imposing a fine on the government for an illegal order.
The affidavit has been filed according to the court directions to the government for developing the Jama Masjid and restore it to its pristine glory.
In Kerala and Jammu and Kashmir, however, Eid will be celebrated on Wednesday.
A 16-year-old boy has been apprehended for allegedly attacking a teenager with a paper cutter near the Red Fort area after the victim refused to give him money for drugs. The juvenile was also found to be involved in another attempt to murder case.
A bipartisan US body claimed that religious freedom conditions in India remained on the downward trajectory in 2026, citing restrictions on activities of NGOs, censorship and transnational repression.
Delhi is under an unprecedented security clampdown with 25,000 police and paramilitary personnel deployed, 45 metro stations shut, and mobile internet suspended in parts of the city, as authorities deny permission for a protest by the Cockroach Janta Party against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar.
Both Hindu and Muslim parties involved in the Gyanvapi dispute have rejected the Supreme Court's mediation initiative, stating that the matter should be resolved through judicial adjudication. This decision came during a session at a Varanasi court, where both sides expressed their preference for a court verdict over an out-of-court settlement.
Eid al-Fitr was celebrated across India with prayers for peace and brotherhood, alongside protests condemning US-Israel actions in West Asia.
Amid a debate triggered by Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath's recent remarks on offering namaz in public places, several Muslim clerics have said that Eid-ul-Azha prayers would be offered inside mosques and Eidgahs as in previous years, and, if required, arrangements could be made for multiple prayer shifts.
The blue-coloured ASI board, currently kept at the Satyavrat police outpost, is expected to be installed soon, replacing the older sign that bore the name "Shahi Jama Masjid."
As the sun sets in a riot of colours during the days of Ramzan, the call to prayer is heard and Indian streets are transformed into places of both faith and feasting.
An Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) team on Thursday carried out measurements and assessments ahead of the planned whitewashing and renovation work of the Shahi Jama Masjid, officials said.
The Allahabad high court on Friday directed the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) to clean the premises of Jama Masjid in Sambhal but did not pass an order for whitewashing of the mosque.
A 52-year-old man convicted of killing a rickshaw puller in 1998 was arrested by Delhi Police after failing to surrender following the dismissal of his appeal by the Delhi High Court in 2025.
Three men from Delhi were detained in Sambhal, India, for allegedly attempting to perform Hindu rituals, including a havan and puja, at the Shahi Jama Masjid. The incident occurred on Friday, with police citing concerns about public order and potential disruption to communal harmony. The mosque is a site of ongoing religious tensions, with four people having died in violence last year related to a court-ordered survey. The detainees claimed they were attempting to perform rituals at a nearby Vishnu Harihar temple.
The Allahabad high court on March 12 directed the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) to undertake and complete the whitewashing at the mosque within one week.
The Sambhal administration in Uttar Pradesh has stated that no work should be carried out on the Shahi Jama Masjid without the approval of the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI). This decision comes after the mosque's management committee sought permission to redecorate the mosque ahead of Ramzan. The matter is currently pending in court, and the property belongs to the ASI. The administration has emphasized that no tampering with the mosque is allowed until the ASI grants permission.
Tension has been brewing in Sambhal since November 19 when the court-ordered survey of the Shahi Jama Masjid was carried out following claims that a Harihar temple previously stood at the site.
The Allahabad high Court has put a hold on an FIR order against several policemen, including former Sambhal circle officer Anuj Kumar Chaudhary, regarding an alleged firing incident, pending further hearing.
Lawyers on Wednesday protested against the transfer of Sambhal Chief Judicial Magistrate (CJM) Vibhanshu Sudheer, alleging that the move undermines judicial independence.
'This is an annual preventive exercise undertaken before the Republic Day air show. Birds such as black kites are naturally drawn to open areas and food sources, and if they enter the flying corridor, they can pose a serious hazard to aircraft performing low-level manoeuvres'
A judicial commission has submitted its report to Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath regarding the violence that occurred in Sambhal in November 2024 during a survey of the Shahi Jama Masjid. The report addresses the events leading to the violence and potential demographic shifts in the region.
While multiple agencies are currently probing the car blast in Delhi and the recently busted white collar terror module spread across at least three states, Faridabad Police has formed a separate Special Investigation Team to look into the activities of Al Falah University, several of whose doctors were arrested in connection with the high profile case.
A court in Sambhal, Uttar Pradesh, has directed the court-appointed commissioner to submit a survey report on the Jama Masjid mosque within 10 days. The survey was ordered following claims that a temple stood on the site. The court set the next hearing date for January 8. Tensions have been escalating in Sambhal since November 19 when the survey began, leading to violence on November 24 that resulted in four deaths and injuries.
A court in Budaun will decide on December 24 whether to proceed with a hearing in the Jama Masjid Shamsi versus Neelkanth temple case. The dispute arose in 2022 when a Hindu group claimed the temple existed at the mosque site and sought permission to worship. The Supreme Court recently restrained all courts from entertaining and passing any orders on lawsuits seeking surveys of religious places under the Places of Worship (Special Provisions) Act, 1991. The Muslim side argues that the lower court should not proceed with the hearing as it cannot pass any orders, while the Hindu side maintains the Supreme Court order does not stop the hearing. The court will now decide whether to continue the proceedings.
