Varanasi: A Varanasi court dismissed a plea seeking an inquiry into the antiquity of the Shiva lingam at the Gnanavabi Masjid. Gnanavabi Masjid is located adjacent to Kashi Vishwanath Temple in Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh. Alleging that the mosque was built during Mughal rule by demolishing a portion of the temple, five Hindu women filed a case in a Varanasi court seeking permission to offer daily worship to the Hindu deities on the side wall of the mosque throughout the year. In this regard, the court ordered a field inspection with video recording in the mosque. During that inspection, the mosque was reportedly found to contain a Shiva lingam. However, the mosque side has denied that it is a spring. Meanwhile, a petition has been filed in the Varanasi court by the Hindu side to conduct a scientific study to determine the antiquity of the Shivlinga in the mosque.
Justice Vishwesha heard the arguments of both sides and adjourned the verdict after hearing the petition. The verdict was announced yesterday, while the verdict has already been postponed twice. In it, the judge has rejected the petition of the Hindu party requesting to conduct a carbon dating test, which is a scientific study and antiquities test. The Supreme Court has already ordered that the area claimed to be Shiva Lingam should be sealed and protected. Therefore, considering the protection of the Shiv Lingam, the judge has rejected the plea citing the Supreme Court orders, said the public prosecutor Sanjeev Singh. It is noteworthy that Muslim advocates argued against conducting carbon dating tests on the Shivlingam.