The plea claims that recently several Waqf properties have been “demolished overnight in a brazen display of highhandedness” and without following the legal procedure.
The Delhi High Court on Friday sought responses from New Delhi Municipal Council on Delhi Waqf Board’s plea anticipating the demolition of a 150-year-old mosque at the Sunehri Bagh Road roundabout while directing that “status quo be maintained” till August 14.
A single judge bench of Justice Prateek Jalan issued notice to the NDMC and the police while directing the parties to hold a “joint inspection” on July 12 at 3:00 PM and adding that they may also fix any further inspection as deemed necessary.
“Status quo be maintained in respect of the property in question until the next date of hearing. List on 14.08.2023,” the order reads.
The NDMC is at liberty to give notice of the proposed inspection to any other authority as it may consider necessary, the HC said. The court also directed the respondents to file their response to the plea in two weeks, further directing NDMC to place a copy of the joint inspection report before it.
The Delhi Waqf Board–a statutory authority, filed the writ petition in “anticipation of action” proposed to be taken by NDMC in respect of a mosque situated at Sunehri Bagh Road roundabout, the court noted.
“The cause of action for filing of the petition is a notice dated 27.06.2023 sent by the NDMC, fixing a joint inspection on 28.06.2023 at 3:00 PM. The petitioner was one of the authorities which was requested to attend the joint inspection. NDMC inter alia referred to a letter dated 26.06.2023 received from the Additional Commissioner of Police, Traffic, requesting it to examine the feasibility of realignment or redesigning of the roundabout or invoking of any other suitable traffic engineering interventions to maintain smooth and safe flow of traffic in the area,” the order states.
The board, represented by advocate Wajeeh Sjafique argued that it was unable to attend the joint inspection as the communication was received by the concerned officer only after the time of inspection.
“At this stage, learned counsel for the parties agree that a further inspection may be carried out in the presence of the representatives of the petitioner so that the petitioner’s views can also be taken into account,” the order states.
“However, from the Imam of the Mosque it is learnt that the respondents have inspected the mosque and instead of adopting other measures, the respondents are going to demolish the mosque under reference in the week commencing from 03.07.2023,” the petition said.
The plea claims that recently several Waqf properties have been “demolished overnight in a brazen display of highhandedness” and without following the legal procedure.
“The modus operandi is that a waqf property, even if it is century old, is marked as obstructing right of way or the movement of traffic and soon thereafter, in a surreptitious manner, a decision is taken to remove it. The waqf property/religious structure is then cordoned off and is razed either in wee hours or in the dead of night in the presence of heavy policy force or paramilitary force,” the petition said.
It said the mosque, which has been “in existence from at least more than 150 years”, was popular and it caters to a large number of worshippers. “The photographs taken by the technical team of the petitioner on 03.07.2023, i.e., a Monday, clearly demonstrate that the congestion is not because of the roundabout, on which the mosque under reference is situated, but because of the uncontrolled parking of vehicles on the both carriage ways of Motilal Nehru Marg,” the plea claims.
