Mandi. After the controversy over Sanjauli Mosque in Himachal Pradesh’s capital Shimla, now there is a new twist in the illegal mosque case in Mandi of the state. Hindus have claimed that there was a temple in place of the mosque in Mandi. They have demanded the Archaeological Department to excavate inside the mosque. At the same time, the PWD has demolished the security wall and toilet outside the Mandi mosque. The security wall and toilet of the mosque were built on PWD land.
Along with the issue of Shimla’s Sanjauli Mosque heating up, the atmosphere also became heated over the illegal construction of Mandi’s mosque. Recently, the Hindu community in Mandi had protested against the mosque on Jail Road, calling it illegal and demanding its demolition. Now some intellectuals of Mandi have met DM Apurv Devgan and demanded excavation inside the mosque. They claim that the elders of Mandi also say that where the mosque is being built on Jail Road, there used to be a Shiva temple earlier. These intellectuals have demanded from the DM that after this information comes to light, the Archaeological Department should get the mosque excavated. They claim that if the Archaeological Department does the excavation, the remains of an ancient temple can be found there.
On the other hand, the Muslim side is going to challenge in the court the order of the Commissioner Court to demolish the illegal construction of the mosque situated on Mandi’s Jail Road within 30 days. On 13th September, the Commissioner Court had ordered to demolish the illegal construction of the mosque and restore the old status. In this case, the Muslim side is getting the map of the mosque prepared again by a retired architect from the government. Quoting the Muslim side, Hindi newspaper Dainik Jagran has reported that after the new map is prepared, the Muslim side will take a decision about changing the illegal construction of the mosque or demolishing it. Earlier, after the issue of Shimla’s Sanjauli Mosque heated up, the mosque committee had proposed that it would demolish the illegal construction.
