Hindus consider Bhojshala a temple dedicated to Vagdevi, another name for Goddess Saraswati, while Muslims identify it as the Kamal Maula Mosque.
ASI team at Bhojshala complex
The Madhya Pradesh High Court on Friday ruled that the disputed Bhojshala complex in Dhar is a temple dedicated to Goddess Saraswati. The court also said the Muslim community may approach the state government for separate land in the district to construct a mosque.
In its verdict on the Bhojshala Temple Kamal Maula Mosque dispute, the Indore bench observed that there was evidence of a Sanskrit teaching centre and a Saraswati temple at the site. The court said the religious character of the structure indicated that it was originally a temple.
The dispute concerns the identity of the ASI protected monument in Dhar district. Hindus consider Bhojshala a temple dedicated to Vagdevi, another name for Goddess Saraswati, while Muslims identify it as the Kamal Maula Mosque. A Jain petitioner has also claimed that the complex was originally a medieval Jain temple and gurukul.
The controversy deepened after the Archaeological Survey of India issued an order on April 7, 2003, allowing Hindus to worship at the complex every Tuesday and Muslims to offer Friday namaz there. Hindu petitioners later challenged the arrangement in the High Court and sought exclusive worship rights over the site.
The case was heard by Justice Vijay Kumar Shukla and Justice Alok Awasthi of the Indore bench of the High Court. The bench examined five petitions and one writ appeal linked to the dispute. After hearing arguments from Hindu, Muslim and Jain groups and reviewing thousands of documents related to the monument, the court reserved its verdict on May 12.
During the proceedings, the ASI submitted a scientific survey report running over 2,000 pages. The report stated that a large structure from the period of the Parmar kings existed at the site before the mosque and that temple remains had been reused in the present structure. Hindu petitioners said coins, sculptures and inscriptions found during the survey supported their claim that the complex was originally a temple.
The Muslim side described the ASI report as “biased” and alleged that it was prepared to support the Hindu petitioners. Rejecting the charge, the ASI told the court that experts from different communities, including three Muslims, were involved in the survey process.
The High Court had ordered the ASI to conduct the scientific survey on March 11, 2024. The survey began on March 22 and continued for 98 days before the report was submitted to the court on July 15.
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