 "Qutub Minar ‘not a place of worship’, ASI tells Delhi court: What the rules say about praying at archaeological sites")
Yet another day and yet another controversy surrounding a Mughal-era structure in India. A petition to hold prayers at the Qutub Minar is being heard at a court in Delhi.
What the ASI said
The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), which is the custodian of protected monuments, told the Saket district court on Tuesday that the Qutub Minar is not a place of worship and the alteration of the structure is not permissible.
The ASI said that the revival of worship is not allowed, adding that no community has worshipped at Qutub Minar or any of its parts since the time it has been a protected monument even as there are a number of structures within the complex.
“Fundamental right cannot be availed in violation of any status of the land. The basic principle of protection/conservation is not to allow starting of any new practice in a monument declared and notified as a protected one,” ASI told the court.
#Breaking
— Live Law (@LiveLawIndia) May 24, 2022
ASI opposes before Delhi Court suit seeking restoration of as many as 27 Hindu and Jain temples inside the #QutubMinar complex, says Fundamental right cannot be availed in violation of any status of the land.
Read reply here: pic.twitter.com/uPEd3ancxD
The ASI in its reply to the district court that there are a number of sculptures existing within the Qutub Minar complex but it would be “contrary to the provisions of the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains (AMASR) Act, 1958 to agree with the contention of the respondents or any other person claiming a fundamental right to worship in this centrally protected monument”.
When prayers allowed at the archaeological sites
According to rules, prayers are allowed at a protected site only if it were a functioning place of worship at the time ASI took charge. The rules prohibit worship at “non-living places”, where there has been no continuity of worship when it became an ASI-protected site.
There are 3,691 centrally protected monuments and archaeological sites maintained by the ASI, which functions under the Ministry of Culture. Of these 820 have places of worship because they are ‘living monuments”. The rest fall under the category of non-living monuments, where no new religious rituals can be started.
What are living monuments?
The Taj Mahal at Agra is an example of a living monument, where namaz has been offered at the mosque in the complex for 400 years. However, only local Muslims can pray here. They have an identity card which allows them access to the mosque and have been instructed not to start any new ritual at the site, reports The Indian Express.
Other notable living monuments include the remains of an old Hindu temple inside the Dayaram Fort in Hathras, three mosques in Kannauj, Roman Catholic Church in Meerut, Nila Mosque in Delhi’s Hauz Khas Village, Bajreshwari Devi Temple in Himachal Pradesh’s Chamba, and several Buddhist monasteries in Ladakh, according to the report.
Namaz at the Qutub Minar
Reports have surfaced the government has barred namaz at the Qutub Minar.
“No recent order was issued. The ASI has in the past asked prayers be stopped as per the policy. The last such direction was sent some months ago,” a ministry of culture official told The Hindustan Times on Monday, citing that the site fell under the “non-living places” category.
The demand from the Hindu side
Hari Shankar Jain, one of the appellants in the Qutub Minar case, has demanded the restoration of deities and pooja be offered at the complex.
The petition filed before the Delhi court seeks restoration of 27 temples that were allegedly destructed to construct the Qutub Minar.
A new controversy erupted after the ASI former regional director Dharamveer Sharma claimed that the Qutub Minar was constructed by Raja Vikramaditya and not by Qutb al-Din Aibak to study the direction of the sun.
After Culture Secretary Govind Mohan visited the monument on Saturday, it was reported that the ASI has been ordered to conduct excavations to ascertain who built the Qutub Minar.
While the Union Culture Minister GK Reddy had dismissed reports, Firstpost accessed exclusive information that the National Monuments Authority (NMA) had carried out a survey around the Quwwatul Islam mosque complex.
Having identified a plethora of evidence to suggest that the complex was constructed by repurposing material from 27 razed Hindu-Jain temples, the NMA, led by former Rajya Sabha member Tarun Vijay, has sent a detailed report to the culture ministry.
Sources told Firstpost that it was the discovery of the defaced idol of Lord Ganesha during one of the surveys which prompted the complete exploration of the mosque.
When the Ganesha idols were found
There are two Ganesha idols called “Ulta Ganesh” and “Ganesha in cage”, which are located in the compound of Qutub Minar.
I appeal to @ASIGoI that Ganesh idols be removed from Qutub Minar complex & handed over to The National Monuments Authority & historical details of temple be brought in public domain@kishanreddybjp pic.twitter.com/t5mXq7zWnD
— RP Singh National Spokesperson BJP (@rpsinghkhalsa) April 7, 2022
Tarun Vijay, also the chairman of the NMA, had written to the ASI requesting that the idols found in the Quwwat-ul-Islam mosque be moved out of the complex “owing to their disrespectful placement”.
However, the Delhi court had ordered that no action be taken and the idols remain at the complex until the next hearing of the case.
Earlier this month, right-wing groups staged at the Qutub Minar, demanding the complex be opened for worship and the idols in the Quwwat-ul-Islam Mosque be restored.
With inputs from agencies
Read all the Latest News , Trending News , Cricket News , Bollywood News , India News and Entertainment News here. Follow us on Facebook , Twitter and Instagram .
 "Qutub Minar or Sun Tower? Explaining the latest controversy surrounding the heritage site")
 "Qutub Minar or Sun Tower? Explaining the latest controversy surrounding the heritage site")