New Delhi, 17 February (HS): The Supreme Court has issued a notice of contempt to the officials responsible in the case of bulldozer action on Kushinagar's Madni Masjid in Uttar Pradesh. A bench headed by Justice BR Gavai said that no demolition action will be taken till further orders.

During the hearing, the court asked why contempt action should not be taken against the responsible officials. The petition was filed by the Masjid Managing Committee. It was said in the petition that the mosque was built on private land. The Municipal Corporation had given approval to build the mosque in 1999. The SDM had investigated the matter and after the investigation, issued a press note on 22 December 2024 saying that the mosque was built according to the rules. The petition states that the unauthorized construction of the mosque was removed by the Managing Committee.

The Masjid Committee had filed a petition in the Allahabad High Court. The Allahabad High Court had stayed the demolition of the mosque till 8 February. The process of demolishing the mosque was started as soon as February 8 ended. The petition states that the authorities violated the Supreme Court orders on bulldozer action on November 13, 2024.

Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar