The Dhannipur mosque got the final clearance for construction from the Ayodhya Development Authority (ADA) after the Supreme Court mandated it in the Babri Masjid-Ram Janmabhoomi verdict.
The Indo-Islamic Cultural Foundation (IICF) trust will be constructing a mosque, a hospital, a research institute, a community kitchen and a library on five acres of land given by the Uttar Pradesh government.
The construction has been delayed for over two years due to the pending clearance and matters of change of land use by the ADA.
Ayodhya Divisional Commissioner Gaurav Dayal was quoted by PTI as saying, “We have approved the project of Ayodhya mosque in the board meeting held on Friday. The sanctioned maps will be handed over to the Indo-Islamic Cultural Foundation (IICF) after a few departmental formalities which are to be completed within a couple of days.”
IICF secretary Athar Hussain said that the trust will be holding a meeting after all the clearances are made and finalize the plan for the construction of the mosque.
He said, “The meeting of the trust will be held after Ramzan that ends on April 21. The date to begin the construction work of the mosque will be finalised in that meeting.”
“We laid the foundation of the mosque on January 26, 2021. We chose that day because on this day, India's Constitution came into effect more than seven decades ago.
"We laid the foundation of the mosque on January 26, 2021. We chose that day because on this day, India's Constitution came into effect more than seven decades ago," he said. The Dhannipur mosque will be bigger than the Babri Masjid. It will not be modelled on the structure which once stood in Ayodhya,” he added.
It may be noted that the Dhannipur mosque site is about 22 kilometers away from the venue of the Ram temple in the pilgrim town.
Bringing the decades old matter to a close, the Supreme Court in a historic judgment on November 9, 2019 ordered the construction of a Ram temple at the disputed site in Ayodhya, while directing the state government to allocate five acres of land for the construction of the mosque at a prominent place in the district.
Constituted for that purpose, the IICF trust announced its plans to build a hospital, a community kitchen, a library, and a research institute along with the mosque.
Hussain said that the upcoming hospital will serve humanity in true spirit of Islam as taught by the Prophet 1,400 years ago.
“The hospital won't be the usual concrete structure, but will be in sync with the architecture of the mosque, replete with calligraphy and Islamic symbols,” he said.
The IICF secretary added, “While the hospital will treat the sick and infirm, the community kitchen will feed the hungry, blurring barriers of religion, caste and creed. The green belt at the site will create awareness on climate change and the research institute will study the contribution of Muslims in the freedom struggle and the legacy of Hindu-Muslim brotherhood which helped India attain independence.”
Meanwhile, the construction works for the Ram temple are underway in Ayodhya in full swing. Officials of Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra, the trust which is undertaking the temple construction, claimed that the temple will open for devotees in January, 2024.
It is also noteworthy that India will go into its next general elections in that year.
