Shimla: Otherwise a quiet hill town nestled in the foothills of the Himalayas, Shimla is on the boil. At the centre of the raging row that has swept the capital of Himachal Pradesh, while also bringing the ruling Congress and Opposition BJP on the same page, is a mosque.
Located in Sanjauli, a sub-division of Shimla district, the five-storeyed structure made its way into local and political discourse after a brawl erupted last month involving a group of men said to be its ‘occupants’.
On Saturday, the Shimla Municipal Corporation Commissioner’s court heard the matter pertaining to allegations that the mosque is an illegal structure and set 5 October as the next date of the hearing. Rahul Sharma, appearing for the civic body, told the media after the hearing, “This is a case of illegal construction. The Waqf Board has been made a party to this so we had filed for a reply. They submitted their answers.”
The Waqf Board, it is learnt, filed a reply claiming that the land on which the mosque stands belongs to it and the extended construction was carried out in line with the rules. But the Waqf Board failed to furnish the required documents to prove its claims.
The latest flare-up can be traced back to 30 August when a brawl erupted between a group of men and one Yashpal Singh, a 37-year-old from Malyana in Kasumpti assembly segment—adjoining Shimla constituency. A police case was subsequently registered against Gulnawaz (32), Sarik (20), Saif Ali (23), Rohit (23), Rihan (17) and Samir (17) and Rihan. All of them hail from UP’s Muzaffarnagar, except Rihan, who is from Dehradun.
On 1 September, Yashpal, along with Congress councillors from Kasumpti assembly segment wards, BJP workers and Sanjauli residents gathered outside the mosque to protest against the ‘illegal’ structure and its occupants. They demanded the administration raid the mosque, arrest those named in the case and demolish the structure.
They were assured of action by Shimla Deputy Commissioner Anupam Kashyap, who also sought a report from the civic body on the legality of the structure.
Another protest was held Thursday, after which protesters issued a two-day ultimatum to the local administration to heed their demands.
“If a common man constructs a small ‘dhara’, the municipal corporation takes no time to erase it. Here four floors have come up in the middle of a sub-division,” said Raju Thakur, a protester who said he was affiliated with the BJP.
Floors added to mosque under successive govts
Though BJP and the Congress are calling for strict action against those who allegedly erected the mosque illegally, sources in the civic body said the extended structure came up during the past decade under successive governments.
Over the past 14 years, since a case was first registered alleging that the mosque is illegal, four new floors were added to the structure, sources said, adding that the matter has been heard 44 times by the municipal corporation without any outcome.
Shahzad Imam, maulvi of the mosque in question, claimed the structure dates back to 1947 and extended construction took place after 2007. “The matter is pending before municipal corporation court and Waqf Board is contesting the matter,” he told ThePrint.
Himachal Pradesh Waqf Board state officer Kutubuddin Ahmed added, “Some outsiders occupied this building, raised some floors. Now we have cleared the mosque and are fighting the case in the municipal corporation court.”
Congress minister raises issue, Owaisi reacts
The matter seeped into the political discourse after BJP MLA from Chopal Balbir Verma raised the matter in the assembly on 4 September.
Taking part in that discussion, state minister Anirudh Singh, who is also the Congress MLA from Kasumpti, stated in no uncertain terms that the mosque was built illegally on land owned by the state government. “They started construction of the structure without proper approval. First, one floor was built, then the rest of the floors were constructed,” he said.
In an apparent reference to those who built the mosque and continue to live there, Singh added, “They have a habit of engaging in illegal activities.”
Presented some concerning facts during the Vidhan Sabha Session regarding the illegal construction of a mosque in Shimla. #Shimla #HimachalPradesh #Sanjauli pic.twitter.com/IrfiSlugPt
— Anirudh Singh (@anirudhsinghMLA) September 4, 2024
“The case for unauthorised construction is ongoing in the Municipal Corporation court, and during this period four additional floors have come up. This entire matter should be investigated,” he said, amidst the sound of BJP MLAs thumping their desks in agreement.
The minister also called for the verification of those residing in the mosque. He alleged that there has been tension in parts of Shimla owing to the influx of ‘illegal migrants’, whom he suggested could be Rohingyas. “What is this happening in the state? New people are coming without verification. People from Jamaat are arriving. Are they Rohingyas? I know one or two people who have come from Bangladesh,” he said.
Reacting to the Congress minister’s statement, AIMIM MP Asaduddin Owaisi wrote on X (formerly Twitter): “There is only hatred in Himachal’s ‘Mohabbat ki Dukaan’! In this video, the Himachal minister is speaking the language of the BJP.”
क्या हिमाचल की सरकार भाजपा की है या कांग्रेस की? हिमाचल की “मोहब्बत की दुकान” में नफ़रत ही नफ़रत! ये वीडियो में हिमाचल का मंत्री भाजपा की ज़ुबान में बोल रहा है।https://t.co/hyc4566wdz
हिमाचल के संजौली में मस्जिद बनाई जा रही है, उसके निर्माण को लेकर कोर्ट में केस चल रहा है।…
— Asaduddin Owaisi (@asadowaisi) September 4, 2024
Urban Development Minister Vikramaditya Singh responded to the AIMIM chief and urged him not to politicise the issue. “Action will be taken as per the law in this case. This is a case of violation of town planning laws and giving it a political and communal colour is a criminal act,” Vikramaditya told ThePrint Friday.
Anirudh Singh, meanwhile, termed Owaisi a ‘B team’ of the BJP. “Between wrong and right, I am siding with the right. If this structure is illegal, it has to be demolished the way civic authorities do with the common man. This is a mosque, illegally occupied by some people, all this is a secondary thing and a matter of investigation,” he told ThePrint Friday.
Meanwhile, Shimla MLA Harish Janartha, seen as a Virbhadra Singh loyalist, aired his displeasure with his party’s handling of the issue. During the discussion in the assembly, he said he should have been consulted before a protest was staged in his constituency. After Anirudh Singh took responsibility for the protest, Janartha said his constituency is his “priority” and party leaders should not interfere in each others’ constituencies.
With no concrete ruling from the municipal corporation Saturday, local groups have given a call to gather in Sanjauli on 11 September.
(Edited by Amrtansh Arora)
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This is the standard operating procedure (SOP) for most new mosques. They usually come up on govt land illegally. Once occupied and constructed, the Waqf Board throws it’s weight behind the illegally constructed structure. Any attempt by civic authorities to enforce the law becomes a political and communal issue.
The Left-liberal media, quite conveniently, places the blame at the doors of the Hindu right-wing, all the while brushing under the carpet the patently illegal act of occupation of govt land.
In northeast India, thousands of such illegal mosques have come up on govt land.