What is the Krishna Janmabhoomi Case & How Did the Dispute Over Shahi Idgah Mosque Originate? | EXPLAINED

The Supreme Court last week refused to stay the Allahabad High Court’s decision allowing a court-monitored survey of the Shahi Idgah adjoining the Krishna Janmabhoomi temple in Mathura.

The mosque, built in the 17th century during the reign of the Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb, was believed to have been built at Krishna Janmasthan, the site where Lord Krishna was born. The land of the Shahi Idgah Masjid has been part of several litigations filed before the Mathura court and waiting to be heard in the Allahabad High Court.

Earlier this month, the Allahabad High Court allowed an application for the inspection of the Shahi Idgah mosque complex.

The case stems from a suit in the court of Civil Judge Senior Division (III) by Bal Krishna through Hindu Sena chief Vishnu Gupta and others for shifting of the Shahi Masjid Idgah. The group claims that the Mosque was constructed on a part of the 13.37-acre land of the Sri Krishna Janmabhoomi Trust.

Here is all you need to know about the Krishna Janmabhoomi temple in Mathura:

What is Krishna Janmabhoomi-Shahi Idgah Masjid Dispute?

The Shahi Idgah mosque in Mathura was built on the orders of Emperor Aurangzeb adjacent to the Krishna Janmasthal — believed to be the place where Lord Krishna was born.

Hindu parties to the litigation claim that the 17th-century Mughal-era Mosque was built after demolishing a temple at the birthplace of the Lord Krishna. The demand was admitted by a local court in December last year but the Muslim side had filed an objection in the High Court.

The Krishna Janmabhoomi-Shahi Idgah case is the second temple-mosque dispute in which the high court has allowed to conduct a survey over the past months.

So far, nine cases have been filed in Mathura Court in the cases of Shri Krishna Janmabhoomi and Shahi Idgah Masjid. A common thread in all the petitions is a prayer for the removal of the mosque from the 13.77-acre complex, which it shares with the Katra Keshav Dev Temple.

What is the Survey?

The Allahabad High Court has approved a scientific survey on the Shahi Idgah complex at Mathura. The survey will be conducted in the same manner in which it has been done at the Gyanvapi Mosque in Varanasi.

The court on Thursday appointed an advocate commissioner and gave in-principle approval for surveying the Shahi Idgah mosque complex. The modalities of the Commission of advocates for the survey will be decided on December 18.

Origins of the Dispute

The first temple at the site in Mathura is believed to have been built 2,000 years ago, in the 1st century CE, according to a report in The Indian Express.

The Krishna Janmasthan site, believed to be the birthplace of Lord Krishna, was an important centre for pilgrims visiting the city and attracted devotees from across the subcontinent.

The temples in Mathura were attacked several times during the raids of Mahmud of Ghazni, sultan of the Persianate Ghaznavid empire, in 1017 or 1018 CE and Delhi sultan Sikandar Lodhi (1458-1517).

However, during the reign of Akbar (1556-1605), land and revenue grants were made to temples of various Vaishnavite sects in Mathura.

Under Mughal ruler Jahangir, the Rajput ruler of the Orchha kingdom which was a vassal state of the Mughals built a grand temple in 1618 at the site where the Katra Keshavdev temple now stands.

In 1669, Aurangzeb issued a royal order regarding the destruction of all Hindu schools and temples across the empire. The Kashi Vishwanath temple in Kashi was also destroyed after the farmaan was issued. The mosque was built by Aurangzeb in 1670 on the site of an earlier temple, the report said.

Under the British rule, the East India Company auctioned 13.37 acres of land at the Katra Keshavdev site to Raja Patnimal, a wealthy banker from Varanasi. The ongoing litigation is on this particular site as the Hindu side claim that the 13.37 acres of land include the Shahi Idgah mosque while the Muslim side say it did not.

Raja Patnimal’s descendants sold the land to industrialist Jugal Kishore Birla in 1944. Later in 1951, Birla formed the Shri Krishna Janmabhoomi Trust to facilitate the construction of a temple at the site. The construction of the temple started in 1953 and was finished in 1983, when the temple took its present shape adjacent to the Shahi Idgah mosque.

Current Dispute

• In September 2020, Lucknow-based advocate Ranjana Agnihotri and six others filed a plea seeking a survey of the Shahi Idgah mosque located in the same complex as the Katra Keshav Dev Temple, close to the spot known as ‘Krishna Janmabhoomi’.
• The plea argued that the original ‘kaaraagar’, where Lord Krishna is believed to have been born, “lies beneath the construction raised by Committee of Management Trust Masjid Idgah” and sought the removal of the 17th-century mosque.
• In the same month, the plea was rejected as non-admissible as it held that the petitioners were not from Mathura, did not have locus, and could not be ‘next of kin’ of the deity. The court also said that Shahi Idgah had entered into a compromise in 1968, which was also formalised through a decree of the court.
• In May 2022, the ruling was overturned by the Mathura district court. Afterwards, a revised petition was filed in the district court.
• In May this year, the Allahabad High Court transferred to itself all matters related to the Sri Krishna Janmabhoomi-Shahi Idgah dispute pending before the Mathura court.
• In July, the Allahabad High Court dismissed a writ petition filed by the Shri Krishna Janmabhoomi Mukti Nirman Trust requesting the court to direct the Mathura civil judge to decide its application for a scientific survey of Krishna Janmabhoomi-Shahi Idgah Mosque premises first before deciding the objections raised against the suit.
• The Muslim side approached the Supreme Court challenging orders of the Allahabad High Court that directed to club all matters related to the Krishna Janmabhoomi. At least a dozen cases have been filed in the courts of Mathura on the Sri Krishna Janmabhoomi issue since 2020.
• In September, the Supreme Court rejected a plea seeking a scientific survey of the Krishna Janmabhoomi site’s Shahi Idgah mosque. However, last week, the Allahabad high court allowed a court-monitored survey of the Shahi Idgah and agreed to the appointment of an advocate commissioner to oversee the survey of the mosque premises.
• The Supreme Court has refused to stay the Allahabad High Court’s decision allowing a court-monitored survey of the Shahi Idgah on an oral plea by the Muslim side and asked them to challenge the order by way of an appeal.