Allahabad HC to hear petition in another mosque-temple dispute
Jaunpur's Atala mosque challenges registration of suit
Prayagraj (UP), Dec 7: In yet another litigation related to mosque-temple disputes, the Allahabad High Court is likely to hear next week a petition filed by the management committee of Jaunpur's Atala Mosque against the orders of the lower court allowing registration of a suit which claimed that the structure was originally a Hindu temple.
The suit was filed before a Jaunpur court by the Swaraj Vahini Association (SVA) and Santosh Kumar Mishra. It sought the "disputed" property be declared 'Atala Devi Mandir' and followers of the Sanatan religion be allowed the right of worship there.
On November 8, Justice Rohit Ranjan Agarwal directed SVA and Mishra to file their reply within three weeks to the plea by the mosque committee and asked the petitioner to file a rejoinder affidavit within a week.
In the suit, the SVA had prayed for the possession of the structure and sought a mandatory injunction to restrain non-Hindus from entering the property. The plaintiffs had also sought permission to sue under Order 1 Rule 8 CPC in a representative capacity.
Under Order 1 Rule 8 of the Code of Civil Procedure (CPC) dealing with a representative suit, one or more persons can sue or defend on behalf of all persons having the same interest in a suit.
This prayer was allowed in May this year and the same was upheld by an order of the District Judge in August this year. Both the orders have been challenged in the petition before the High Court.
The high court observed that a petition challenging the earlier passed on May 29, 2024, was rejected on August 12, 2024, by the district court solely on the grounds of non-maintainability.
The court said, "Matter requires consideration. Let a counter affidavit be filed by both the respondents within a period of three weeks."
The mosque management committee pleaded before the High Court that the complaint was defective, as the plaintiff SVA, a society registered under the Societies Registration Act, was not a juristic person and, thus, was not competent to file the suit in a representative capacity.
Further, the society's bylaws do not authorise it to engage in litigation of this nature, it claimed.
Several litigations filed in various courts related to temple-mosque disputes have come into the limelight including on Gyanvapi Mosque in Varanasi, Shahi Idgah Mosque in Mathura, Shahi Jama Masjid in Sambhal, Ajmer Dargah of Sufi saint Moinuddin Chishti and Budaun’s Jama Masjid Shamsi, where petitioners have claimed that these were built after destroying ancient temples and sought permission to offer Hindu prayers there.
Violence during protests against a court-ordered survey in Uttar Pradesh's Sambhal claimed four lives on November 24.
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Another North Goa nightclub sealed; Kejriwal says corruption led to fire tragedy
Panaji (PTI): As part of a crackdown against tourist establishments violating laws and safety norms in the aftermath of the Arpora fire tragedy, Goa authorities on Saturday sealed a renowned club at Vagator and revoked the fire department NOC of another club.
Cafe CO2 Goa, located on a cliff overlooking the Arabian Sea at Vagator beach in North Goa, was sealed. The move came two days after Goya Club, also in Vagator, was shut down for alleged violations of rules.
Elsewhere, campaigning for local body polls, AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal said the fire incident at Birch by Romeo Lane nightclub at Arpora, which claimed 25 lives on December 6, happened because the BJP government in the state was corrupt.
An inspection of Cafe CO2 Goa by a state government-appointed team revealed that the establishment, with a seating capacity of 250, did not possess a no-objection certificate (NOC) of the Fire and Emergency Services Department. The club, which sits atop Ozrant Cliff, also did not have structural stability, the team found.
The Fire and Emergency Services on Saturday also revoked the NOC issued to Diaz Pool Club and Bar at Anjuna as the fire extinguishers installed in the establishment were found to be inadequate, said divisional fire officer Shripad Gawas.
A notice was issued to Nitin Wadhwa, the partner of the club, he said in the order.
Campaigning at Chimbel village near Panaji in support of his party's Zilla Panchayat election candidate, Aam Aadmi Party leader Kejriwal said the nightclub fire at Arpora happened because of the "corruption of the Pramod Sawant-led state government."
"Why this fire incident happened? I read in the newspapers that the nightclub had no occupancy certificate, no building licence, no excise licence, no construction licence or trade licence. The entire club was illegal but still it was going on," he said.
"How could it go on? Couldn't Pramod Sawant or anyone else see it? I was told that hafta (bribe) was being paid," the former Delhi chief minister said.
A person can not work without bribing officials in the coastal state, Kejriwal said, alleging that officers, MLAs and even ministers are accepting bribes.
