In what can be seen as an effort to appease the Muslim community, Thirumavalavan, the chief of Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi (VCK), has made a post on his official X account that the CDMA has issued an order for a mosque’s demolition, and the Jamaat executives have called for its preservation. However, the reality is that the Supreme Court has already ruled on the case, granting the petitioner until 31 May 2024 to demolish the mosque. This ruling was made despite the CMDA Authorities having issued notices as early as 9 December 2020. The assertion by the VCK chief raises concerns about whether officials from the CMDA are disregarding the apex court’s order and failing to uphold the verdict in Tamil Nadu.
In this regard, VCK chief Thirumavalavan stated, “The CMDA has issued an order to demolish the mosque in Seemathamman Nagar behind Omni Bus Stand – #Chennai Koyambedu. The Jamaat executives met in person today (10-06-2024) morning at the head office of the Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi at Ashoknagar Ambedkar Thidal and demanded to ‘protect the mosque‘. I personally visited the place where the mosque is located this evening!”
#சென்னை கோயம்பேடு ஆம்னி பேருந்து நிலையம் பின்புறம் சீமாத்தம்மன் நகரில் உள்ள மசூதியை இடிப்பதற்கு CMDA ஆணை பிறப்பித்துள்ள நிலையில் –
ஜமாஅத் நிர்வாகிகள் விடுதலைச் சிறுத்தைகள் கட்சியின் தலைமை அலுவலகமான சென்னை அசோக்நகர் அம்பேத்கர் திடலில் இன்று (10-06-2024) காலை நேரில் சந்தித்து… pic.twitter.com/vZRH4codjM— Thol. Thirumavalavan (@thirumaofficial) June 10, 2024
In February 2024, the Supreme Court upheld a ruling from the Madras High Court ordering the demolition of a mosque and madrassa in Koyambedu, Chennai, as it deemed the structure to be “completely illegally built.” The appeal, heard by Justices Surya Kant and KV Viswanathan, contested the High Court’s decision from 22 November 2023, which found the mosque was constructed without proper building permits.
Justice J Nisha Banu of the Madras High Court expressed dissatisfaction with the negligence shown by officials regarding unauthorized constructions, reiterating previous warnings. The court ordered the demolition of the mosque and relocation to a new area, prompting the appeal to the Supreme Court.
The apex court, headed by Surya Kant and KV Viswanathan, observed that the petitioner, the Hydha Muslim Welfare Trust, was not the rightful owner of the property. It also highlighted several points that the petitioner did not own the property, the land belonged to the Chennai Metropolitan Development Authority (CMDA) without any legal claims, the petitioner occupied the land without authorization, No building plans were sanctioned for the construction and despite notices from CMDA authorities in December 2020, the illegal construction persisted. Based on these findings, the Supreme Court found no grounds to overturn the High Court’s decision to demolish the mosque. However, it granted authorities until 31 May 2024 to carry out the removal of the structures.
It is important to mention that in the case of ‘State of Gujarat Vs Union of India’ (2006), the Supreme Court, on 31 January 2018, directed all High Courts to ensure the enforcement of its earlier rulings regarding the removal of illegal religious structures from public spaces.
(with inputs from Bar & Bench)
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