Bhojshala Complex Dispute: Supreme Court To Hear Muslim Side Appeals After Madhya Pradesh High Court Declares Bhojshala A Temple

Indore (Madhya Pradesh): The Supreme Court on Monday agreed to list for hearing a batch of appeals filed by the Muslim side challenging the Madhya Pradesh High Court's verdict, which held that the disputed Bhojshala complex in Dhar district is a temple dedicated to Goddess Saraswati.

A Bench comprising Chief Justice of India Surya Kant and Justices Joymalya Bagchi and V Mohan said it would list the matter soon after senior advocate Huzefa Ahmadi, appearing for the Muslim appellants, sought an urgent hearing.

Qazi Moinuddin, the mosque's caretaker and one of the intervenors in the case, along with others, has filed an appeal against the High Court's order in the apex court.

On May 15, the High Court ruled that the disputed Bhojshala-Kamal Maula Mosque complex is a temple dedicated to Goddess Saraswati. It also set aside an April 7, 2003, order of the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), which had allowed the Muslim community to offer Friday prayers at the site.

The High Court permitted the Muslim community to approach the State Government for the allotment of separate land in the district for the construction of a mosque.

It also said that the Centre and the ASI could decide the administration and management of the Bhojshala complex, an 11th-century protected monument under the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains Act, 1958.

The High Court held that the religious character of the disputed complex was that of Bhojshala, a temple associated with Goddess Vagdevi Saraswati and linked to Parmar ruler Raja Bhoj, who is credited with turning Dhar into a centre of Sanskrit learning.

The Hindu community claims the site as Bhojshala, a temple dedicated to Goddess Saraswati, while the Muslim side identifies it as the Kamal Maula Mosque.

Following the High Court's order, the Muslim parties approached the Supreme Court challenging the verdict. Anticipating the appeal, the Hindu parties also filed caveats in the apex court, seeking that no order be passed without hearing them.

A Hindu group had approached the High Court in 2022 seeking a scientific survey to determine the religious character of Bhojshala. On March 11, 2024, the High Court ordered a survey of the one-acre site to be conducted between March 22 and June 30.

The ASI's survey report concluded that the monument was built using the remains of earlier temples and that the existing mosque structure was erected centuries later, based on inscriptions, sculptural fragments and architectural remains.