Ajmer Dargah Temple Claim Reaches High Court; Anjuman Committee Seeks Stay On Civil Case Hearing

The issue regarding the claim of a Shiva temple inside the dargah of Khwaja Moinuddin Hasan Chishti in Ajmer reached the Rajasthan High Court on Thursday. The Khadims' organisation, Anjuman Syed Zadgan, has appealed to the High Court to stay the ongoing hearing of the temple claim in the Ajmer Civil Court.

Justice Vinod Kumar Bharwani’s bench heard the petition and scheduled the next hearing for next week.

The committee argued that, since the Supreme Court is already examining the constitutional validity of the Places of Worship Act, 1991, it has barred lower courts from hearing similar matters. Despite this, the Ajmer Civil Court is continuing the proceedings, with the next hearing scheduled for April 19. In this context, the Anjuman Committee has requested the High Court to halt the civil court proceedings.

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On the other hand, countering the Anjuman Committee’s petition in the High Court, Additional Solicitor General R.D. Rastogi, representing the Central Government, argued that the committee is not a party to the original case and hence, its petition is not maintainable. The High Court will now hear the matter again next week.

Notably, on September 25, 2024, Hindu Sena President Vishnu Gupta filed a petition in the Ajmer Civil Court claiming the existence of a Shiva temple inside the dargah premises. The civil court admitted the petition and issued notices to the Ajmer Dargah Committee, the Ministry of Minority Affairs, and the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI).