SC refuses to pass interim status quo order on video survey inside Gyanvapi mosque

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Friday refused to put a stay on the plea challenging the ongoing videography at the mosque, located next to Kashi Vishwanath temple.

The top court, however, agreed to consider listing the plea of a Muslim party against the survey of the Gyanvapi premises.

A bench headed by Chief Justice N V Ramana was told by senior advocate Huzefa Ahmadi, appearing for the Muslim side in the case, that a plea has been filed against the survey being conducted at the Varanasi site. "Let me see," the CJI said on the urgent listing of the plea.

This comes after a Varanasi court on Thursday granted the permission to conduct the survey at the Gyanvapi mosque, following which the Varanasi district official announced that the videography inside the mosque will resume on Saturday.

"We have filed in relation to a survey which has been directed to be conducted in relation to the Varanasi property. This (Gyanvapi) has been a mosque since time immemorial and this is clearly interdicted by the Places of Worship Act," Ahmadi said.

The lawyer pleaded that an order of status quo is passed by the top court at the moment in response to the local court's direction to conduct a survey of the mosque complex.

The CJI said he was not aware of what the issue was, as he has not seen the papers.

"I do not know anything. How can I pass such an order? I will read. Let me see," the CJI said.

The Gyanvapi masjid is situated close to the revered Kashi Vishwanath temple in Varanasi. The court yesterday ordered that the police should file FIRs if there are any further attempts to obstruct the videography survey.