Court Allows Prayers At Gyanvapi: Five Things You Need To Know

A Varanasi district court on Wednesday (31 January) allowed the Hindu side to offer prayers at 'Vyas Ka Tehkhana' inside the Gyanvapi complex. 

The court has asked the district administration to make the necessary arrangements within the next seven days.

"The District Administration will have to make arrangements within 7 days. Puja will start within seven days. Everyone will have the right to perform Puja," Vishnu Shankar Jain, advocate for the Hindu side, was quoted as saying by news agency ANI.

This comes after ASI in its scientific survey reported concluded that a large Hindu temple stood at the site prior to the construction of the existing structure.

Here are five things that you need to know about the Gyanvapi dispute and the latest developments in the case:

'Vyas Ka Tehkhana'

The 'Vyas ka Tehkhana' (Vyas's cellar) is located right in front of Lord Nandi at Kashi Vishwanath temple complex.

The Gyanvapi structure has four 'tahkhanas' (cellars) in the basement out of which one is still in possession of the Vyas family who used to live there.

Till November 1993, puja used to be conducted in the basement. However, the Hindu side claimed, that the then state government stopped the worship and prayers in December 1993, and also removed the priests who conducted the puja there.

Earlier on 17 January, the district administration has taken over the control of 'Vyas ka Tehkhana'.

According to the Hindu side, apart from things of religious importance, there are multiple 'murtis' inside the cellar.

Now, the right to conduct worship and prayers has been restored by the Varanasi court.

Gyanvapi Dispute: Initial Petition and Subsequent Dismissal (1991-1998):

The process to reclaim the site began with a petition filed by local priests in 1991, claiming the disputed Gyanvapi mosque in Varanasi was part of the Kashi Vishwanath temple demolished by Aurangzeb.

They sought permission to worship within the Gyanvapi complex. This petition was dismissed in 1998.

Resurgence Post-Ayodhya Verdict (2019):

The case gained attention again after the Supreme Court's Ayodhya verdict in 2019.

Lawyer Vijay Shankar Rastogi filed a petition seeking an archaeological survey of the site's legitimacy.

However, the mosque's management and the Sunni Central Waqf Board opposed this survey.

Survey and Discoveries (2021-2022)

In August 2021, five Hindu women filed a petition for permission to worship deities (Shringar Gauri, Ganesha, Hanuman, and Nandi) within the mosque complex, leading to a court-ordered videography survey in April 2022.

During this survey in May 2022, a 'Shivling' was found in a pond, causing the area to be sealed.

Legal Developments and ASI Survey (2022-23)

In July 2022, Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud stated that the Supreme Court would await the Varanasi District Judge's decision on an application challenging the suit filed by five women seeking 'darshan' at Gyanvapi Mosque complex. 

In July 2023, the Varanasi court directed the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) to conduct a "scientific investigation" of the Gyanvapi Mosque premises, including a ground-penetrating radar survey beneath the three domes and potential excavation if necessary.

However, the Supreme Court temporarily halted this detailed scientific survey until 26 July to allow time for appeals against the order.

In August 2023, the High Court upheld the district judge's order, permitting the ASI to conduct the survey in the barricaded area of the Gyanvapi premises, excluding the sealed section, starting on 4 August .

The district court had initially set a deadline for the ASI to submit the survey report by 11 December 2023 after multiple extensions were granted.

On December 11, the Varanasi district court granted an additional week for the ASI to submit its scientific survey report.

Finally, on 18 December, the ASI submitted its report on the scientific survey of the Gyanvapi premises to the Varanasi district court.

The ASI report, which was made public last week, concluded: “Based on scientific studies/survey carried out, study of architectural remains, exposed features and artefacts, inscriptions, art and sculptures, it can be said that there existed a Hindu temple prior to the construction of the existing structure".