A petition has been filed in the Supreme Court, requesting that the Archaeological Examination of India conduct a secret survey of all ancient and notable mosques in India that are over a hundred years old and have wells and ponds.
The petition is filled by a lawyer, Vivek Narayan Sharma.
The PIL requested that the wuzu or wudu (Islamic procedure followed by Muslims for cleansing parts of the body before offering prayers) be moved from disputed ponds and wells in mosques to taps or modern faucets until a confidential survey could be completed so that if any relic is discovered, unnecessary communal hatred and hurt religious sentiments could be avoided.
Advocates Shubham Awasthi and Sapta Rishi Mishra further requested that guidelines and directives be issued to keep the disputed properties free of any party’s interference until a detailed confidential survey could be conducted and a report filed.
The petition requests that the respondents conduct a survey of all ancient prominent mosques in India that are over 100 years old and have disputes over the presence/alleged presence of relics as mentioned in Ramayana, Mahabharata, Puranas, Upanishads, Vedas, Jain, Agamas, Buddhist Texts, Ancient Religious Texts belonging to Hindus, Sikhs, Jains, Buddhists in India.
