At site of little-known mosque on college campus in Varanasi, a tense standoff

The district administration and the police have said that since the land on which the masjid is built is recorded as UP College property in the revenue records, there’s little they can do to intervene in the matter. The UP Sunni Central Waqf Board too has clarified that the land does not fall under Waqf property.

District Magistrate S Rajalingam said, “The entire land is recorded as UP College property in the revenue records, indicating it is private land. There is no mention of the masjid in the revenue records.”

The masjid authorities, however, refuted that the land on which the masjid is built belongs to the UP College. They stated that they are currently gathering documentation related to the land’s ownership and claim that the masjid is one of two built by the “nawab of Tonk” in Varanasi around the mid-19th century.

“In 1867, the British removed Nawab Muhammad Ali Khan of Tonk, Rajasthan, from power and detained him in Varanasi. Upon his release, the British forbade him from returning to Tonk or any part of Rajasthan. The nawab built two masjids in Varanasi around the mid-19th century. The masjid on the college campus is one of the two and the other is located about 500 meters away. Prayers have been offered at both masjids five times a day since then,” said Mohammad Nazeer, the former mutawalli or caretaker of the mosque on the campus.

Mohammad Azam, the current mutawalli, said, “People from neighbouring areas came to the masjid for prayers. Around 25-30 persons would come daily, and this number would rise to 200 on Fridays.”

College principal Dharmendra Kumar Singh, however, said it was originally a mazar (tomb). “What was once a mazar kept expanding despite repeated objections from students. Students have staged protests in the past but our timely intervention has ensured that the matter has never come to the notice of outsiders. The last renovation at the mosque took place in 2012,” he said.

The college recently disconnected the power supply to the masjid.

On the reason why the matter flared up this time around, Singh pointed to the resurfacing of a 2018 notice allegedly issued by the UP Sunni Central Waqf Board, which went viral on social media in the last week of November. The notice, ostensibly addressed to the college manager, sought a response to a claim by a Varanasi resident, alleging that the land on which the masjid is built is waqf property and should be registered. However, the Waqf Board later clarified that the notice was revoked by an order from its chairman on January 18, 2021. “No further action is in progress in this regard,” the Board stated.

Israr Khan, 25, who lives about 100 meters from the masjid and works at a saree shop, claimed “a deliberate attempt by the college authorities” to prevent them from praying at the mosque. “The situation has become such that we now fear for our safety when we go there to offer prayers,” he said, heading to another mosque.

Back on the campus, students say they are determined not to allow namaz to resume at the site.

Abhishek Singh, former president of the UP College Students’ Union, said, “We can’t let outsiders enter the campus to offer prayers, especially since the college is co-educational and women also study here. Besides, the namaz disrupts our studies.”

Deputy Commissioner of Police, Varanasi, Chandra Kant Meena, assured that a police force has been deployed and the situation is under control.