Priests' body condemns moving court on Lord Krishna birthplace dispute
Mathura: A body of priests has condemned the filing of a petition in a Mathura court for the removal of Shahi Idgah mosque near the birthplace of Lord Krishna in the holy city.
The Akhil Bhartiya Tirth Purohit Mahasabha condemned the legal move two days after a group of people filed a petition in a court here for the removal of the 17th-century mosque that they claimed was built at the birthplace of Lord Krishna within the 13-acre premises of the Katra Keshav Dev temple here.
National president Mahesh Pathak of the Akhil Bhartiya Tirth Purohit Mahasabha condemned the move saying "some outsiders" are trying to disturb the peace and tranquillity of Mathura by raising a frivolous temple-mosque issue.
There is no temple-mosque dispute in Mathura at Srikrishna Janmasthan after a compromise between both the parties in 20th century, said Pathak.
He said there is complete harmony between both the communities and a side by side existence of both the shrines has become an example of the emotional integration.
The petition filed in the court of the district's Senior Civil Judge Chhaya Sharma on Friday has also demanded the annulment of a 1968 Mathura court ruling, ratifying a land deal reached between the Shri Krishna Janmasthan Seva Sansthan and Shahi Idgah Management Committee on the mosque.
Meanwhile, Uttar Pradesh Power Minister Shrikant Sharma, visiting Mathura to supervise the power infrastructure development work in the district, said in a democratic country, everyone has the right to chose and profess his faith and everyone has also the freedom of speech and expression.
Asked about the filing of the petition on Lord Krishna birthplace dispute, the minister said it is true that foreign invaders tried to demolish religious places in the country.
The minister, however, added that India is a democratic country and the judiciary is supreme in a democracy. He said the government and his party, including he himself, is governed by the law.
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MediaOne TV Facebook page restored after block linked to ‘government request’
Kochi: The official Facebook page of Malayalam news channel MediaOne TV has been restored after being blocked without prior notice, the broadcaster said on Wednesday.
The channel was quoted by Maktoob as saying that the restriction was lifted automatically, with Meta Platforms informing it that the action had been taken following a “government request” which has now expired or been reversed.
The development came shortly after the channel approached the Kerala High Court challenging the blocking of its page, terming it arbitrary and in violation of legal provisions and judicial precedents. The High Court had issued notice to Meta via email hours before the restriction was withdrawn.
In its petition, the channel said access to its Facebook page had been restricted for users in India without citing any specific content or alleged violation. It contended that while individual posts may be taken down under applicable a rule, blocking an entire page goes beyond the scope of such measures.
The incident followed an earlier action taken against the channel in 2022, when the Ministry of Information and transmitting prohibited it from transmitting. It cited national security concerns regarding the Ministry of Home Affairs' refusal of security clearance.
The Supreme Court of India in April 2023 set aside the ban, observing that national security claims cannot be made without substantive basis and that criticism of government policies does not render a media outlet anti-national.
