Muslim petitioners on Friday said they will challenge the Madhya Pradesh High Court ruling declaring the disputed Bhojshala structure in Dhar district a Saraswati temple.
Ashar Warsi, a lawyer for the Muslim party, told PTI, “We are not happy with the Supreme Court’s decision. We will challenge it in the Supreme Court as soon as possible.”
He claimed that the scientific survey of the Bhojshala complex by the Archaeological Survey of India and its report relied upon by the HC were “flawed”.
Jitendra Singh ‘Vishen’, one of the Hindu petitioners, had earlier in the day filed an objection in the Supreme Court through advocate Barun Kumar Sinha, asking the court not to pass any orders without hearing it in case of any appeal against the High Court’s order.
Meanwhile, Advocate Warsi said the case, which involved disputed facts, should not have been dealt with under Article 226 of the Constitution and should have been referred to a civil court instead. Under Article 226, a person can file an action directly against a violation of statutory or fundamental rights in the High Court or the Supreme Court.
Warsi said his clients have already filed a case in the Dhar civil court.
In its ruling on Friday, the Indore bench of the Madhya Pradesh High Court ruled that the Bhojshala-Kamal Maula mosque complex is a temple dedicated to Goddess Saraswati. It also revoked the ASI order of 7 April 2003 which allowed Muslims to pray on the premises every Friday.
Warsi said the Muslim party hopes the Supreme Court will consider its arguments and restore permission to offer namaz at the site.
