Indore (Aryavarth): The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) on Monday submitted its scientific survey report of the disputed Bhojshala-Kamal-Maula mosque complex to the Indore bench of the Madhya Pradesh High Court.
ASI’s counsel, Himanshu Joshi, handed over the more than 2,000-page report to the HC’s registry.
“I have submitted the report,” Joshi told PTI over the phone.
The HC will hear the case on July 22, he said.
On July 4, the HC ordered the ASI to present by July 15 the complete report of the nearly three-month-long survey on the premises of the disputed 11th-century monument, the subject of a wrangle between Hindus and Muslims.
The Hindu community considers Bhojshala a temple of Vagdevi (Goddess Saraswati), while the Muslim side calls it Kamal Maula mosque.
On March 11, the HC ordered the ASI, the country’s premier agency for archaeological research and protection of cultural heritage, to conduct a scientific survey of the complex on an application by the ‘Hindu Front for Justice’.
It then gave six weeks to the ASI to complete the survey. The ASI later sought more time for the report submission.
The ASI began surveying the disputed complex on March 22, which ended recently.
The agency had issued an order on April 7, 2003, concerning access to the monument after a controversy erupted.
As per the order, which has been in place for the last 21 years, Hindus are allowed to worship in the Bhojshala on Tuesdays, while Muslims are allowed to offer namaz at the place on Fridays.
The Hindu Front for Justice has challenged this arrangement in its petition.
