Court rejects Gyanvapi mosque management committee's plea to stop ASI survey
Varanasi (UP) (PTI): A court here has rejected the Gyanvapi mosque management committee's plea to stop the ongoing scientific survey of the complex by the Archaeological Survey of India.
District government advocate Rajesh Mishra said that on the plea filed by the Anjuman Intezamia Masjid's committee, District Judge A K Vishvesh said the survey has already got the nod from the Allahabad High Court and the Supreme Court.
Hence, it was not possible to pass any order in this matter from this court, the judge said.
The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) is carrying out a scientific survey of the Gyanvapi mosque premises, next to Kashi Vishwanath temple here, to determine whether the 17th-century mosque was constructed over a Hindu temple.
Mishra said the mosque management committee had claimed before the district court that the ASI survey was being conducted against the prescribed rules and should be stopped. No notice was served to the litigants and no fees were charged, the mosque committee argued.
The district judge said that no new conditions can be imposed on the plaintiffs. "The Archaeological Survey of India is not a private organisation. It is doing government work. It is not right to force someone to pay the expenses of the survey," the judge said on Thursday.
Mishra said the court also heard the petition of the Hindu side to survey the sealed 'wazukhana' in the Gyanvapi complex. The court has fixed October 5 for a hearing on this matter.
The survey began after the Allahabad High Court upheld a Varanasi district court order and ruled that the survey is "necessary in the interest of justice" and will benefit both the Hindu and Muslim sides. The Supreme Court had refused to stay the Allahabad High Court order.
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Man arrested with Rs 2.54-crore heroin in Mumbai
Mumbai (PTI): Police have arrested a man and seized over 500 grams of heroin worth Rs 2.54 crore in the illicit market from him in Mumbai, officials said on Friday.
The police's Anti-Narcotics Cell (ANC) made the drug seizure in Santacruz in the western suburbs. The operation was conducted by the Kandivali unit of the ANC on Thursday as part of a special crackdown against drug trafficking in the area, they said.
Acting on specific inputs, an ANC team conducted a raid in Santacruz (East) and intercepted a man. During a search, the team recovered 508 grams of high-grade heroin from his possession, an official said.
The seized contraband, a highly addictive, opioid drug derived from morphine, is estimated to be worth Rs 2.54 crore in the international market, he informed.
Following the seizure, a case was registered against the man under relevant sections of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, 1985, and he was formally placed under arrest in the early hours of Friday.
The police are currently investigating the source of the drug and trying to identify the intended recipients of the consignment, he said.
