The Supreme Court on Thursday framed an interim administrative framework to ensure the peaceful observance of Basant Panchami rituals by the Hindu community and the conduct of Friday Juma Namaz by the Muslim community at the disputed Bhoj Shala–Kamal Maula complex in Dhar district, Madhya Pradesh, amid a continuing contest over the religious character of the protected monument.
The Bench of Chief Justice of India Surya Kant, Justice Joymalya Bagchi and Justice Vipul Pancholi passed the order on an interlocutory application moved by the Hindu Front for Justice in pending proceedings, seeking permission for uninterrupted, day-long religious ceremonies on the occasion of Basant Panchami (falling on January 23).
The application arose in the backdrop of competing claims over access, timing, and use of the premises by adherents of both faiths.
The Bhoj Shala complex, an 11th-century structure under the protection of the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) in terms of the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains Act, 1958, occupies a contested legal and historical space.
While Hindu claimants assert that the site is a temple dedicated to Goddess Vagdevi (Saraswati), Muslim stakeholders regard it as the Kamal Maula Mosque. Pursuant to a long-standing administrative arrangement formalised in 2003, Hindus are permitted to perform puja on Tuesdays, whereas Muslims are allowed to offer namaz on Fridays, subject to regulation by the district administration.
During the hearing, counsel for the applicants submitted that the Basant Panchami observances would involve continuous pujas and havans from sunrise to sunset. On the other hand, senior counsel appearing for the mosque management committee clarified that Juma Namaz is canonically required to be performed within a fixed time window, between 1 pm and 3 pm, after which worshippers would vacate the premises.
The Union of India, represented by the Additional Solicitor General, along with the Archaeological Survey of India and the State of Madhya Pradesh, assured the Court that all necessary measures would be taken to preserve public order, communal harmony, and compliance with judicial directions, invoking the State’s constitutional obligation under Articles 25 and 26 read with reasonable restrictions under Article 25(1).
In response to a request from the Hindu applicants to defer the namaz to later hours in the evening, the mosque committee expressed its inability to do so, citing the mandatory nature of the prescribed prayer time under Islamic law. A via media was thereafter suggested, whereby the Muslim side would furnish advance details of the expected number of worshippers, enabling the district administration to create a demarcated enclosure within the same compound, with separate ingress and egress, and to regulate entry through passes or other neutral administrative mechanisms.
Accepting this arrangement, the Bench directed that an exclusive and segregated area be earmarked for the conduct of namaz during the stipulated hours, while simultaneously ensuring that an independent space remained available to the Hindu community for the performance of Basant Panchami rituals. The Court emphasised that these measures were purely interim and facilitative in nature, intended solely to prevent any breach of peace or disturbance to public order.
The Bench further issued an appeal to all stakeholders to extend mutual cooperation and respect, and to abide by the supervisory authority of the State and district administration in the interest of maintaining law and order, consistent with established constitutional jurisprudence on religious freedoms and communal coexistence.
The interlocutory application was considered in proceedings arising out of a 2024 Special Leave Petition filed by the Maulana Kamaluddin Welfare Society, Dhar, challenging an interim order of the Madhya Pradesh High Court directing the ASI to undertake a scientific survey of the disputed premises.
In April 2024, the Supreme Court had permitted the continuation of the survey, while expressly prohibiting any excavation or activity that could alter the character of the structure, in keeping with principles later echoed in cases such as Ram Janmabhoomi and Places of Worship (Special Provisions) Act-related jurisprudence. The Court had also restrained any reliance on the survey findings without its prior approval.
The top court of the country today formally took the Special Leave Petition on record and disposed of it with a direction that the writ petition pending before the High Court be listed before a Division Bench headed by one of its senior-most judges.
Upon being informed that the ASI had completed the scientific survey and submitted its report in a sealed cover to the High Court, the Supreme Court observed that the High Court would be at liberty to unseal the report, furnish copies to all parties, and permit the filing of objections. Where confidentiality concerns subsist, the parties may be allowed inspection of relevant portions in the presence of their legal representatives.
The High Court was further directed to proceed to final adjudication thereafter, with due consideration of all objections, expert opinions, and recommendations, in accordance with law.
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