ASI gets more time to complete Gyanvapi mosque survey

A Varanasi court on Thursday granted four more weeks to the Archaeological Survey of India to complete scientific survey of the Gyanvapi mosque complex and submit its report, and said that the duration of the survey will not be extended beyond this.

Government counsel Rajesh Mishra said that District Judge A K Vishvesh accepted their appeal to extend the period of the ongoing survey by four more weeks during a hearing on a plea by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI).

The ASI, which was to submit the report of the survey by October 6, now has time till November 6 to do so.

The ASI is carrying out a scientific survey of the Gyanvapi mosque premises, next to Kashi Vishwanath Temple here, to determine whether the 17th-century mosque was constructed over a pre-existing structure of a Hindu temple.

The ASI survey had begun after the Allahabad high court had upheld a Varanasi district court order and ruled that the step is "necessary in the interest of justice" and will benefit both the Hindu and Muslim sides.

During an earlier hearing, the Muslim side had presented its objection, alleging the ASI was digging in the basement as well as other places of the Gyanvapi complex without permission and accumulating debris on the western wall of the structure, which risks collapse of the structure.

The ASI team was not authorised to survey the premises by removing debris or garbage, the Muslim side had said.

The mosque side also had gone to the Supreme Court against the Allahabad HC's order. The apex court had on August 4 refused to stay the Allahabad High Court order on the ASI survey.

In its order, the bench of Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud and Justices J B Pardiwala and Manoj Misra, however, asked the ASI not to carry out any invasive act during the survey. This ruled out any excavations, which the Varanasi court had said can be conducted, if necessary.

This was the third time the court had granted an extension to ASI for the survey.

The Varanasi court, on August 4, had granted the ASI an additional month to complete the survey, extending its original deadline (from August 4) to September 4.

The court provided another extension of four weeks for the survey work on September 6. The court gave its latest extension on Thursday.