A lawyer at Gyanvapi mosque conducting the video survey claimed that a shivling was found, while the videographer said he is not aware of any such finding. Read the latest update here.
On the last day of the video survey of the Gyanvapi mosque in Varanasi, lawyer Vishnu Jain claimed that a shivling was found inside the well. The shivling is alleged to be 12 feet by 8 inches in diameter.
CLAIMS MADE
Further, Jain told Aaj Tak/India Today TV about the shivling over the phone, he also said he would go to civil court to seek its protection. Hours later, the prohibit entry of people in the area.
An advocate from the Hindu side, Madan Mohan Yadav, claimed that
While, Uttar Pradesh’s Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya took to Twitter to celebrate the finding. He wrote, “The manifestation of Baba Mahadev in Gyanvapi on the occasion of Buddha Purnima has given a mythological message to the country’s eternal Hindu tradition.”
In a counter-claim, the lawyer from the Muslim side, Mirazuddin, called the claim incorrect. Another lawyer, Abhay Nath Yadav, said it is better to ask Vishnu Shankar.
Reacting to the news, AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi in a tweet said, Gyanvapi was a mosque, and will always be one.”
VIDEOGRAPHER’S CLAIM
When the videographer Ganesh Sharma was asked about the shivalinga, he said that he is not aware. When asked about the chanting of ‘Har Har Mahadeo” slogans, he replied “You can all very well understand; you are not kids.”
In an interview with Aaj Tak/India Today TV, he said “We were told not to talk about what we have videographed,” he said, adding, “People who are claiming about shivling must be responsible enough. What I can say, the truth will win.”
Earlier, the Varanasi District Magistrate said, “No details of the survey of Gyanvapi mosque were disclosed by any member of the commission. The court is the custodian of the information about the survey. One member was debarred from the commission for about a few minutes yesterday, but was later admitted to the commission.”
Meanwhile, the Supreme Court is likely to hear the Anjuman Intazamia Masjid Committee’s appeal against the Varanasi Court’s order directing the survey of Gyanvapi mosque.
Varanasi has directed the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) to probe the structure of the Gyanvapi Masjid.
Hindu side: The Hindu side is seeking permission to worship daily at the Gyanvapi-Shringar Gauri complex, and for this, the petitioners have demanded survey of the complex. The Hindu side says that to prove the existence of the idol of Shringar Gauri, one has to go inside the mosque. This is the reason why the survey team is attempting to enter the mosque premises to inspect and take video records.
Muslim side: The mosque management committee (Anjuman Intezamiya Masajid) says the idol of Shringar Gauri is outside, on the western wall of the mosque. Moreover, they claim the court did not pass any orders allowing videography inside the mosque but only till the courtyard outside the barricading.
