[Gyanvapi-Kashi dispute] Varanasi Civil Judge behaving in the most arbitrary manner: Urgent application filed before the Allahabad High Court

Anjuman Intezamia has filed an urgent application before the Allahabad High Court in the Gyanvapi Mosque case, contending that the order of the trial court allowing an Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) study of the Mosque was passed illegally and without jurisdiction..The applicants have thus prayed that the operation of the April 8 order of the Varanasi court be stayed..It is further prayed that the application be listed for hearing at the earliest..It has been submitted that despite of fact that the Allahabad High Court had already reserved its judgment in this matter, the Varanasi court has been hearing the contentions of the opposite party (the Temple trust). This is against the spirit of complete justice as well as the challenge to the entire suit proceeding and its authenticity, the application states..The application filed by Senior Advocate F Naqvi and Advocate Syed Ahmad Faizan further states that the lower court had ignored the entire written submissions and the applicability of the Places of Worship (Special Provisions) Act, 1991 and Order 7 Rule 11D of the Civil Procedure Code."It appears the learned civil Judge concerned is more interested to bypass all judicial disciplines and ethics as well as procedures of law and to establish himself as above the judicial hierarchy as defined under the Civil Procedure Code and had assumed himself as the only authority to decide the entire issue without looking into the legal impediment and bar," the application reads..On the issue of stay, it has been contended,“...interim orders granted in present petition as well as the connected petition no. 1521 of 2021 and Writ Petition No. 23421 of 1998 Sunni Central Waqf Board Vs. Ist Additional District Judge, Varanasi and Others are operating till date and are not being vacated to the extent which may presumably be treated as no interim order operating in favor of present applicant.”.On a related note, it has been pointed out that the Bar Association of Varanasi had passed a resolution boycotting the court of Judge Ashutosh Tiwari on March 23 this year due to allegedly arbitrary behaviour on his part..Last week, the Varanasi Civil Court had allowed an ASI survey of the Gyanvapi Mosque in an order passed on an application moved by the opposite party.Justifying its decision to order an ASI survey, the Court held,“A large number of persons including Indians and Non-Citizens, belonging to two religions are equally in knowing the truth of the cause of action of the plaintiffs as well as of the defence of the defendants...The circumstances in the case in hand are such that none of the parties are in a position to lead direct evidence to prove their assertions and counter assertions, as at presently hardly any person would be alive to come and testify before this court......This court is of the view that since the defendants have outrightly denied the factum of demolition of the temple of Lord Vishweshwara in obedience of farman of Badshah Aurangjeb at the disputed site and subsequent conversion of the same into a mosque, hence in these circumstances it is incumbent on the part of this court to find the truth.”.All you need to know about the Gyanvapi Mosque - Kashi Vishwanath Temple land dispute