Hindu and Muslim parties reject Supreme Court proposal for mediated settlement of 3 major temple-mosque disputes

Both Hindu and Muslim parties have declined the Supreme Court's proposal for mediation of disputes in three temple-mosque disputes in Uttar Pradesh.

The Supreme Court had proposed mediated settlement of disputes in the cases relating to disputes over Gyanvapi mosque in Varanasi, Sri Krishna Janmabhoomi- Shahi Idgah Masjid dispute in Mathura and the Sambhal mosque.

However, the offer was declined by the litigants who have instead opted to fight out the issue in court.

The Supreme Court had earlier sought consent of parties involved in these three cases to engage in mediation of their disputes.

The same was done as part of the “Supreme Court Action for Mediated Adjudication and Disputes Harmonization Across Nation (Samadhan Samaroh) 2026”.

The Gyanvapi arises out of an ongoing civil court case involving conflicting claims over the religious character of the Gyanvapi compound.

Among other claims, the Hindu side has said that Hindu prayers were earlier offered by the family of one Somnath Vyas in the Mosque's cellar until 1993, when the Mulayam Singh Yadav-led government allegedly put an end to it.

The Muslim side has opposed this claim and maintained that Muslims have always had possession over the Mosque's building.

The main dispute over the Gyanvapi compound involves a claim by the Hindu side that a section of an ancient temple on the land was destroyed during the rule of the Mughal emperor Aurangzeb in the 17th century.

On the other hand, the Muslim side has maintained that the Mosque predated Aurangzeb's reign and that it had endured various alterations over time.

The Hindu parties have claimed in their suit that the Hindu character of the land in question did not change even if the temple structure was later torn down on Mughal emperor Aurangzeb's orders to erect a mosque.

They have sought the restoration of the ancient temple (Lord Vishweshwar temple) there, and defended their 1991 suit on the ground that the dispute predated the Places of Worship Act.

The Sri Krishna Janmabhoomi- Shahi Idgah disputes is over the structure itself arose after the Hindu side (plaintiffs) filed a suit before the civil court claiming that the Shahi Idgah Masjid (mosque) was built over Krishna Janmabhoomi land.

The civil suit was filed on behalf of a Hindu deity Bhagwan Shri Krishna Virajman and certain Hindu devotees.

The Hindu side has sought the removal of the mosque from its current site.

According to their plea, there are various indications to support the view that the Shahi-Idgah Mosque is, in fact, a Hindu temple. The main suit was initially been dismissed by a civil court in September 2020, citing the bar on admitting the case under the Places of Worship Act, 1991.

However, this decision was overturned after an appeal before the Mathura District Court.

The Sambhal mosque dispute stems from a plea filed by advocate Hari Shankar Jain and seven others, who had claimed that the mosque was constructed over a demolished temple during the Mughal era.

On November 19, 2024, a civil court in Sambhal directed an advocate commissioner to conduct a survey of the Shahi Jama Masjid in Sambhal.

Four people were reportedly killed amid stone-pelting and vehicle-torching incidents that followed the order.

Violence erupted between protestors and police personnel on November 24, 2024 after a team of surveyors arrived in Chandausi town to conduct a second survey of the Shahi Jama Masjid, after the initial survey had been conducted on November 19 that year.