Varanasi: In Varanasi, a group of students gathered at the Uday Pratap College and put up a demonstration chanting “Jai Shri Ram”, demanding the removal of a mosque from the campus.
On Friday, the demonstrators demanded that if the mosque is not standing on a Waqf board land, it must be removed. They warned that if Namaz's performance continues in the mosque inside the campus, they will start reciting Hanuman Chalisa there.
Though the mob attempted to enter the campus, police stopped them outside the gates.
Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP), Cantonment, Vidush Saxena, confirmed that a group of students came forward to voice their concerns and "although the situation became somewhat aggressive, police were able to calm things down." The ACP said some miscreants have been identified and that necessary action would be taken against them. Amid the escalating tensions, police on Thursday restricted outsiders' entry to the campus, allowing only students with valid identity cards.
The move followed Tuesday's unrest after students recited the Hanuman Chalisa when namaz was being offered near the mosque. Seven men were briefly detained after the row on Tuesday, according to the local police.
In a related development, students of the college have formed a "student court" and sent an 11-point letter to the Uttar Pradesh Waqf Board, demanding a response within 15 days regarding the status of the mosque and its ownership.
Mohammad Yaseen, joint secretary of the Anjuman Intezamia Masjid Committee, had earlier said that he had written to the Uttar Pradesh Central Waqt Board to check the status of the mosque on Tuesday.
"The Uttar Pradesh Central Waqf Board has clarified that its 2018 notice claiming the mosque as Waqf property was cancelled on January 18, 2021. There is no reason for the current controversy," Yaseen had claimed.
The tensions arose after students protested against "outsiders" offering prayers at the mosque, citing concerns about unauthorised entry into the college campus.