Gyanvapi mosque case: Varanasi court rejects plea for carbon dating of 'Shivling'

A Varanasi court on Friday rejected the plea for carbon dating of what is claimed to be a 'shivling' in the Gyanvapi mosque premises, a government counsel said.

District Judge AK Vishvesha turned down the Hindu petitioners' plea seeking scientific investigation and carbon dating of the 'shivling', citing Supreme Court directives for its safe keeping so that no tampering can be done, said government counsel Rana Sanjiv Singh.

After completion of hearing of the Hindu side and the mosque committee on Tuesday, the district court had decided to pronounce its verdict on October 14.

The court said in view of the SC rulings and keeping public sentiments in mind, the carbon dating cannot be allowed and the "wazookhana" will remain sealed, said Shivam Gaur, lawyer from the Hindu side.

Four of the five Hindu parties had sought carbon dating of the 'Shivling' found during a court-mandated videography survey of the mosque premises close to the "wazookhana", a small reservoir used by Muslim devotees to perform ritual ablutions before offering Namaz.

The mosque management committee claims that the structure is not a 'shivling' but a part of the "wazookhana" reservoir system.

Advocate Mumtaz Ahmed, who appeared for the Muslim side, had earlier said they have told the court that carbon dating cannot be done.

If the object gets damaged in the name of carbon dating, it amounts to defiance of the Supreme Court order, he had said.

The Muslim side had also contended that the SC had asked the Varanasi district magistrate to keep the object safe and in such a situation, getting it examined cannot be justified.

The Muslim side had also opined that the original case is about the worship of Shringar Gauri while the structure in the mosque has nothing to do with it.

In such a condition, neither any investigation can be done by the Archaeological Department nor a legal report be called after conducting a scientific investigation, they had said.

On the other hand, the Hindu petitioners had contended that the 'shivling' found in the "wazookhana" was part of the case property while putting forward their arguments in favour of carbon-dating of the structure.

The Gyanvapi mosque is located next to the iconic Kashi Vishwanath temple and the case in the Varanasi court has revived claims that the mosque was built on a portion of the Hindu structure demolished on the orders of Mughal emperor Aurangzeb.