More than five months after its announcement, the trust meant to construct a mosque in Ayodhya following the Supreme Court verdict in the Babri Masjid-Ram Janmabhoomi title suit , is yet to be constituted.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi is on August 5 scheduled to attend the foundation ceremony of the Ram Temple in Ayodhya at the site where the Babri Masjid stood till December 6, 1992.
On February 24, the Uttar Pradesh Sunni Central Waqf Board decided to accept the five acres allotted to it by the State government for building a mosque in Dhannipur village in Sohawal tehsil of Ayodhya, around 25 km from the site where the Babri Masjid had stood.
The U.P. Sunni Central Waqf Board is yet to get “physical possession” of the land, said Syed Shoeb, CEO of the Board, on Sunday.
“After the physical possession, a board meeting will be held and we will decide how it [construction] is to be done,” Mr. Shoeb said.
Delay due to pandemic
The trust, expected to have 11 members, would be announced soon, he said. Asked about the delay, Mr. Shoeb said it was mainly due to the pandemic. Moreover, the tenure of the Board expired on March 31 following which it got an extension last month for another six months but the paper work took time till July 1, he said.
Rakesh Yadav, pradhan of Dhannipur, said though officials had a few months ago come to measure the land, it lies vacant. The Agriculture department is still farming on it, he said. “Dhaan laga hua hai [Paddy has been sown],” he said.
Mr. Yadav says locals hope that the mosque would transform the village into a tourist spot. A decision on the design, size and blueprint of the mosque would also be taken in the Board meeting, the date for which is not announced, Mr. Shoeb indicated.
Chairman of the Board Zufar Faruqi had in February announced that the Trust would also construct a centre showcasing Indo-Islamic culture of several centuries, a centre for research and study of Indo-Islamic culture, a charitable hospital, a public library and other public utilities at the site.
Calls to DM Ayodhya, SDM Sohawal and Mr. Faruqi went unanswered.
