BJP calls for demolition of 'illegal' mosque in Aligarh

Aligarh: A local BJP leader Shakuntala Bharti from the Upperkot region of Aligarh has alleged that the Jama Masjid in the district was illegally constructed on "public property" and has called for its demolition. She was armed with an RTI response that was filed with the Municipal Corporation of Aligarh by an RTI activist Keshav Dev Sharma about Jama Masjid.

In response, the Municipal Corporation stated that the 300-year-old Jama Masjid in Upperkot was built on a public property.

Shakuntala Bharti, a Bhartiya Janata Party politician and former mayor, said, "What remains illegal is illegal. Be it Jama Masjid or anything, it should be broken. Whoever filed the RTI, the facts that came out are true. And the municipal corporation is also saying that it is illegal, so demolition is the next step."

She further said, "We will also write a letter to the government regarding this. We will inform the Chief Minister that the facts which have come out to be true on the basis of RTI and what the Municipal Corporation is saying should be considered very soon and what is illegal should be broken."

Former SP MLA Jamir Ullah, meanwhile, claimed that when the mosque was built in 1728, the municipal corporation and the BJP did not exist.

He alleged that the BJP was using such issues to deflect public attention away from genuine concerns.

With inputs from IANS