Win Muslims' hearts: Delhi Jama Masjid Shahi Imam's emotional call to PM Modi after Sambhal violence

Syed Ahmed Bukhari, the Shahi Imam of Delhi's Jama Masjid made an emotional appeal to Prime Minister Narendra Modi to "talk to Muslims of the country" amid mounting communal tensions over mosque surveys across India.

During Friday prayers on Dec 6, he also advised the young Muslim to be patient.

"You (PM Modi) should do justice to the chair you are sitting in. Win the hearts of the Muslims. Stop the miscreants who are causing tensions and negatively impacting the country's atmosphere," Bukhari said.

"We are standing in a situation worse than the one we were in in 1947. No one knows which way the country will go in the future," a tearful Bukhari said at Jama Masjid.

In order to resolve the current tensions, he urged the prime minister to act right away and proposed inviting three Muslims and three Hindus for talks.

Bukhari appealed following violent clashes on Nov 24 during a court-ordered survey of the Shahi Jama Masjid in the Sambhal region of Uttar Pradesh.

The chaos erupted on Nov 24 in Uttar Pradesh's Sambhal district; four people were killed and many others were injured, including 24 police and administrative officials.

Samajwadi Party MP Zia-ur-Rehman Barq and Sohail Iqbal, the son of local SP MLA Iqbal Mehmood, were arrested by Sambhal police on Nov 25 in relation to violence during a court-ordered inspection of a mosque.

Gopal Sharma a lawyer for the Hindu said that in 1529, Mughal Emperor Babur destroyed the temple that had previously existed there.

Bukhari said, “ASI has told us that we have no intention of surveying Delhi Jama Masjid, but the government should seriously think about the survey being done in Sambhal-Ajmer and other places.”

“All these things are not good for the country. I only say that moments committed mistakes; centuries got punished. How long will the country run like this? How long will Hindu Muslim temple mosques continue?” he added.

Authorities also prohibited any outsider, social group, or public official from visiting Sambhal without the orders of the authorities till Nov 30.

Following the notice, a delegation from the Samajwadi Party (SP) was barred from entering Uttar Pradesh's violence-affected Sambhal on Nov 29, prompting a sharp response from party chief Akhilesh Yadav.

The 15-member delegation tasked with investigating recent violence at the Shahi Jama Masjid was formed under the leadership of UP state assembly Leader of Opposition (LoP) Mata Prasad Pandey.

LoP Rahul Gandhi on Dec 4 slammed Uttar Pradesh police for stopping him from visiting the violence-hit Sambhal city and alleged police denied him his constitutional right as LoP to meet the victims.

Gandhi said UP police stopped his fleet of vehicles at the Ghazipur border and did not allow him to go ahead even after he told police he was ready to relinquish his convoy and go to Sambhal alone with them.

Recently, after Mathura and Varanasi, a court in Rajasthan received a petition alleging that the Ajmer Sharif Dargah was built on top of a Shiva temple.

After accepting the plea, the Ajmer court sent letters to the Union Ministry of Minority Affairs, the Ajmer Dargah Committee, and the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) on Nov 27.

The Hindu Sena's national president, Vishnu Gupta, submitted the case, claiming that the dargah was once a Shiva shrine.

The lawsuit claims that the design of the main entrance’s roof resembles that of Hindu architecture, suggesting the site was originally a temple.

"The materials and style of these chatrees clearly indicate their Hindu origin. Their intricate carvings are hidden under layers of color and whitewash, which, if removed, would reveal the site’s true identity," the petition reads.

Additionally, the petition argues that there is no documented evidence to support the claim that the Ajmer Dargah was built on undeveloped land.

Historical records, it states, suggest the site previously housed Jain temples and a Mahadeva temple, where Hindus worshipped their gods.