Saharanpur (Uttar Pradesh) [India], September 8 (ANI): Advocate Naushad Ali, representing the committee of the mosque demolished inside the Saharanpur Collectorate complex, questioned the non-disclosure of an inquiry report related to the property, claiming that an investigation by the Additional District Magistrate (Executive) established that the land was registered as Waqf property.
Speaking to ANI, Ali said the matter pertains to a case filed under the Public Premises (Eviction of Unauthorised Occupants) Act (PP Act), following an application by an individual, Vikas Tyagi, who alleged that the mosque had been constructed on government land.
“We have two court complexes here, the main court complex and the Collectorate complex, and this file regarding an appeal has come to me. I filed the appeal, although a different counsel had contested the case in the lower court; this is a case filed under the PP Act,” Ali said.
He said Tyagi had submitted an application alleging that the mosque was built on government land, following which ADM (E) Archana Dwivedi conducted an inquiry.
“During the investigation, all the facts came to light, specifically, that the property is registered as Waqf land and a mosque has been constructed on it. She submitted her full report,” Ali said.
Questioning the process, Ali alleged that the mosque committee was not provided the original complaint or the subsequent inquiry report, which he said prevented them from responding to the findings.
“The greatest irony for us is that the initial complaint application filed by Vikas Tyagi, and the subsequent report generated based on it, should have been made available to us so that we could file a response,” he said.
He further alleged that the State had filed the case without disclosing the report or details of the investigation and the respective positions of the State and mosque committee.
The Saharanpur Collectorate Mosque was demolished early Saturday following a court order upholding its removal. On September 4, the District Judge's court dismissed the mosque committee's appeal against the City Magistrate's July 17 order directing demolition and imposing compensation of around Rs 6.41 crore over alleged encroachment and misuse of government land.
Meanwhile, Uttar Pradesh Congress chief Ajay Rai was detained in Lucknow on Monday after leading protests against the demolition.
Saharanpur DIG Abhishek Singh said the demolition was carried out in compliance with the court order and legal procedures. He added that additional PAC and RAF personnel had been deployed and social media was being monitored to prevent rumours. (ANI)
ADM inquiry established property was Waqf land: Advocate Naushad Ali amid row over Saharanpur mosque demolition
