New Delhi, April 1: The Supreme Court will hear a petition filed by the Muslim side on Wednesday challenging the Madhya Pradesh High Court’s order regarding the long-standing Bhojshala temple-Kamal Maula mosque dispute in Dhar district.

According to the official list released on the Supreme Court’s website, a bench comprising Chief Justice Suryakant, Justice Joymalya Bagchi, and Justice Vipul M. Pancholi will hear the special leave petition (SLP) filed by the Maulana Kamaluddin Welfare Society on April 1.

This petition contests the order passed by the Indore bench of the Madhya Pradesh High Court on March 16, which decided that the disputed Bhojshala complex would be personally inspected before the next hearing, with regular hearings scheduled to commence on April 2.

The Muslim side argued in its SLP that it was not given sufficient time to register objections to the report presented by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI).

Previously, on March 16, a division bench of the Madhya Pradesh High Court, led by Justice Vijay Kumar Shukla and Justice Alok Awasthi, commented after lengthy deliberations that, considering the various disputes associated with the Bhojshala temple-Kamal Maula mosque complex, they would personally visit the site before the next hearing.

The bench clarified that no party would be allowed to be present during the inspection. The MP High Court also instructed all concerned parties to submit their objections, suggestions, and responses to the ASI survey report before April 2, the date set for regular hearings.

The ASI conducted a detailed scientific survey of the protected monument and indicated that features of earlier temple architecture are present in the existing structure, which the Muslim side has contested.

This dispute is based on opposing claims regarding the historical nature of the Bhojshala complex, where the Hindu side asserts it was originally a temple, while the Muslim side has challenged the ASI’s findings and the methodology adopted during the survey.

Notably, in a previous order passed on January 22, the Supreme Court allowed both communities to practice their respective religious rites at the site. Without imposing any time restrictions for the worship on Basant Panchami, the bench led by Chief Justice Suryakant directed that Friday prayers be performed in a designated area within the complex between 1 PM and 2 PM.

The apex court emphasized the need to maintain communal harmony and urged both sides to cooperate with authorities to ensure law and order, while also establishing a balanced framework for exercising religious rights at the disputed site.

Related