The Supreme Court is set to hear a plea today challenging the Allahabad High Court’s order to conduct a scientific survey, including carbon dating, of a ‘Shivling’ found at the Gyanvapi mosque complex in Varanasi. The plea argues against the High Court’s decision and requests a review.
Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud, along with Justices P S Narasimha and J B Pardiwala, will preside over the hearing. The order was passed on May 12 by the High Court, which directed a scientific investigation to determine the age of the structure claimed to be a Shivling within the mosque premises.
This order reversed the Varanasi District Court’s previous dismissal of a similar plea for scientific investigation, including carbon dating. The discovery of the structure took place during a court-mandated survey of the Gyanvapi mosque adjacent to the Kashi Vishwanath temple in May 2022. Following the High Court’s decision, a local court in Varanasi agreed on May 16 to hear a petition requesting a survey by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) of the entire Gyanvapi mosque premises. The next hearing is scheduled for May 22.
The High Court order emphasized that the structure should not be harmed, as the Hindu petitioners claim it to be a ‘Shivling,’ while the mosque authorities contend that it is part of a fountain in the ‘wazu khana,’ a place for ablution before namaz.
Various institutions, including IIT Kanpur, IIT Roorkee, and the Birbal Sahni Institute of Lucknow, provided reports to the High Court, which guided the decision to determine the age of the structure. These reports suggested that direct dating of the structure is not feasible and recommended proxy dating of surrounding materials related to the ‘lingam.
They also proposed a detailed subsurface survey using Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) to identify any buried ancient structures. The ASI, in its report, expressed that the age of the structure can be determined through scientific methods without causing damage.
The court sought the opinion of the ASI director general on whether conducting investigations, including carbon dating, GPR, and excavation, would potentially harm the structure or if a safe evaluation of its age could be conducted. A suit was filed in the Varanasi District Court seeking the right to regular worship of Maa Shringar Gauri and other deities believed to have idols located within the mosque complex.
