Allahabad High Court stern on Saharanpur mosque demolition, seeks Yogi government's response
The court has temporarily stayed the recovery of the ₹6.41 crore fine imposed on the mosque management.
The Allahabad High Court directed the Uttar Pradesh government to file a response within three weeks on a petition challenging the demolition of a nearly 115-year-old mosque in Saharanpur on September 11. The court has also temporarily stayed the recovery of a ₹6.41 crore fine imposed on the mosque management.
The Wire reported that
Justice Rohit Ranjan Agrawal issued this order on a petition filed by advocate Mohammad Tanveer Ahmed. The petition challenges the orders of the City Magistrate dated July 16 and the District Judge's decision on September 2. The administration had demolished the mosque on September 5.
The Wire reported that senior advocate Ashish Kumar Singh, representing the petitioner, argued that the eviction order was passed without properly determining the ownership of the land. He stated that the names of Wahid Khan and Yakub Khan are recorded in the revenue records concerning this property. The mosque was also registered in the Waqf register. Meanwhile, additional advocate general Manish Goyal, representing the Uttar Pradesh government, told the court that the property is recorded as government land in official records. The next hearing in the case is scheduled for October 12.
The Saharanpur district administration demolished this pre-independence mosque located in the collectorate premises using bulldozers on the morning of September 5. Officials claimed that this religious structure was built by illegally encroaching on government land. A large number of security personnel, including five companies of armed police and riot control forces, were deployed to maintain law and order during the operation.
According to the administration, the demolition operation began at 7 AM. However, opposition leaders alleged that the administration started the action around 5 AM under the cover of darkness. A post office operating on rent in the same premises was also removed, and its belongings were transferred elsewhere.
On September 2, District Judge Satyendra Kumar dismissed the appeal of the mosque management committee. This appeal was filed against the City Magistrate's order dated July 16, which directed the removal of the mosque under the Uttar Pradesh Public Premises (Eviction of Unauthorized Occupants) Act, 1972. The City Magistrate's court also imposed a fine of ₹6.41 crore on the mosque management for unauthorized occupation of 315 square meters of government land. Additionally, a 30-day notice was given to vacate the premises.
The district court, in its 26-page judgment, stated that the mosque management failed to present sufficient evidence to prove its ownership and lawful possession of the property.
The Wire reported that
The mosque first came to the administration's attention in 2025 when Bajrang Dal activist Vikas Tyagi filed a complaint against it. Following this, the revenue department conducted an investigation, and the state government filed a lawsuit through the Saharanpur District Magistrate.
The caretakers of the mosque claim that it was nearly 115 years old. The hurried demolition of the mosque just three days after the district court's decision and the allegations of opposition party elected representatives being prevented from going to the site have sparked a political controversy.
Ikra Hasan, a Member of Parliament from the Samajwadi Party representing Kairana, alleged that the Uttar Pradesh police placed her under house arrest during the demolition of the mosque and did not allow her to go to Saharanpur. Some parts of Saharanpur district also fall under the Kairana Lok Sabha constituency. Opposition parties have described the government's action as illegal and unjust.
The opposition has alleged that Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath's government is targeting religious sites of the Muslim community for communal polarization ahead of the 2027 assembly elections. Meanwhile, Saharanpur police have arrested former journalist and political activist Huda Zariwala for allegedly commenting on Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath regarding the mosque demolition.
AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi raised the question of whether the guarantee of religious freedom provided in the Constitution no longer applies to Muslims.
He wrote on X,
Why is it that our religious sites are continuously being bulldozed on trivial and weak grounds? The mosque committee presented documents proving its existence dating back to 1911. Prayers have been continuously offered there for over a century. He said, “This is a clear definition of ‘waqf by user’ and it is still protected as waqf under the law.
He further stated that.
The Limitation Act, 1963 generally does not give the government unlimited time. The government cannot suddenly wake up one day and claim ownership of immovable property. There has been open, continuous, and public possession of this property for over a century. The state cannot pretend that this possession just began yesterday. Therefore, even if we accept the state's arguments, the principle of adverse possession will still apply. The mosque was built first, and the collectorate came later.”
Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav accused the Adityanath government of using a “communal” issue to divert attention from the theft in the Ram Mandir donations. Yadav alleged that Saharanpur officials acted at the behest of the state government to prevent the mosque caretakers from having the opportunity to appeal to the High Court against the local court's order.
In a conversation with journalists, Akhilesh Yadav said,
Those who do not respect other religions can never be true Hindus. Those who play with the faith of others can also never be true Hindus. A true Hindu can never insult anyone else—this is what we have learned in Sanatan Dharma. True Hindus are those who value harmony. Maintaining harmony should be the government's top priority.
Bahujan Samaj Party chief Mayawati stated that the trend of hastily declaring mosques illegal and demolishing them in Uttar Pradesh is not appropriate. She wrote on X,
The government should immediately stop this and resolve the issue through other means to avoid such negative circumstances.
Congress MP Imran Masood from Saharanpur stated that demolishing the mosque is a violation of the Constitution. He also mentioned that the mosque was registered with the Waqf Board, but the Waqf Board was not made a party in this matter.
Masood stated,
You cannot prove that this land is yours. Based on the khasra record, you claimed that this is government collectorate land. But even today, the record of the collectorate land is still registered in the names of Wahid Khan and Yakub Khan, under whose zamindari this mosque was built. This land is still recorded in their names.