Allahabad High Court Issues Notice On Plea Alleging Construction Of Mosques, Mazars In Chandrasekhar Azad Park

The notice was issued by the Bench of Acting Chief Justice Munishwar Nath Bhandari and Justice Rajendra Kumar today.

[NOTE: This Park (Amar Shaheed Chandrasekhar Aazad Park) assumed historical importance in the year 1931 when great revolutionary and pioneer of Indian freedom struggle Chandra Shekhar Azad an associate of Shaheed Bhagat Singh was brutally killed by Britishers here.]

Importantly, the plea alleges that for the last few years, the members of the Muslim community in their usual manner of capturing the land for their religious purposes are trying to construct a mosque within the parking area and some artificial Mazars (graveyards) have been created at the instance of fundamentalists and the patronage of the Waqf Board.

The plea states:

"…some members of the Muslims community are creating artificial graves to convert the park land into graveyard and they are also trying to convert a building into a mosque within the area of Azad Park…It is astonishing that in this historical park few persons had created artificial graves and were naming a building as Mosque."

Further averments in the plea

It has been contended in the plea that the Government or the Waqf Board have never issued any public notice for registering any portion of the parkland as Waqf property.

alleging that the building illegally raised is being tried to be converted into a mosque, the plea submits:

"No part of the park has ever been used as Waqf property either for the purposes of burying the dead, dargaah or mazar and no mosque was ever constructed or had been in existence in any manner. Even today no mosque is in existence."

Further, it has been averred that the Waqf Board without issuing any notice and giving any opportunity of hearing to members of the public and the affected persons in a celandine manner declared an area of the parkland as Waqf property and that it does not confer any right or title on any person/s in pursuance of such illegal registration.

Also. It has been submitted that the Waqf Board cannot declare any land as Waqf property and cannot act arbitrarily in the exercise of its powers of maintaining Waqf property.

The plea submits that the Uttar Pradesh Government is bound to maintain Azad Park in accordance with the provisions contained in 'The Uttar Pradesh parks, Playgrounds and Open Spaces (Preservation and Regulation) Act 1975'.

Further, the plea has stated that in Arun Kumar Versus Nagar Mahapalika [Civil Misc. Writ Petition No.19296 of 1986], the Allahabad HC had issued strict orders to protect, preserve, maintain and develop the historical Azad Park.

Prayers in the plea

• Remove all the encroachments raised in the shape of religious constructions as Graves, Mazaars or Mosque constructed or created within the area of Amar Shaheed Chandrasekhar Aazad Park
• Maintain Amar Shaheed Chandrasekhar Azad Park in132 acres in the city of Prayagraj in accordance with the provisions contained in The Uttar Pradesh Parks, Playgrounds and Open Spaces (Preservation and Regulation) Act,1975;
• Direct the State Government, Nagar Nigam, Development Authority, and all the concerned authorities to identify the constructions illegally raised encroaching upon public land, pathways, parkland, public road and streets of religious nature or otherwise and remove such illegal and unauthorized constructions in compliance of the order passed by the Supreme Court in SLP(C) No.8519/2006;
• Declare that no part of Amar Shaheed Chandrasekhar Aazad Park is a Waqf property;
• Quashing the order/notification creating Waqf No. 284/1 and 284/2 within the area of Amar Shaheed Chandrasekhar Aazad Park, after summoning the original from the concerned respondent.