Rajasthan: An Indian court in Rajasthan has issued a notice in response to a lawsuit filed by Hindu extremist groups, claiming that a Hindu temple exists beneath the Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti shrine at Ajmer. The petition seeks recognition of Hindu worship rights at the site, which houses the famous Ajmer Sharif dargah.
The lawsuit, filed by Vishnu Gupta, national president of the Hindu Sena, was heard by Civil Judge Manmohan Chandel on Wednesday. The petition, titled Bhagwan Shri Sankat Mochak Mahadev Virajman vs. Dargah Committee, was submitted in September. It alleges that remnants of a Hindu temple were incorporated into the construction of the dargah, a claim based on historical assertions.
The court has issued notices to the Union Ministry of Minority Affairs, the Ajmer Dargah Committee, and the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), which is named as a party in the lawsuit. A hearing has been scheduled for December 20.
In support of the petition, the petitioner’s counsel, Ramswaroop Bishnoi, referenced a 1911 book titled Ajmer: Historical and Descriptive by retired judge Harvilas Sharda. The book claims that debris from a Hindu temple was used in the dargah’s construction, and that a Shiva Lingam was once housed in a sanctum within the dargah, where it was previously worshiped by a Brahmin family. Additionally, the book asserts that parts of a Jain temple were also incorporated into the structure, including debris from the temple found in the 75-feet-tall buland darwaza.
The case has sparked significant controversy due to its religious and historical implications, and the legal proceedings are being closely monitored by various religious groups and the public.
