[The plan of the Ayodhya Mosque released earlier]
Mumbai: The Ayodhya Mosque Development Committee is planning to invite Imam e Haram Sheikh Abdul Rahman Ibn Abdul Aziz al-Sudais for the opening of Masjid Mohammad bin Abdullah to be built in Dhannipur on the land allotted in lieu of the 16th century Babri Masjid.
The historic Babri Masjid stood in Ayodhya till December 6, 1992 when it was demolished by the Hindutva right-wing extremists in broad day light and in the presence of security forces.
The Uttar Pradesh government allotted five-acre land to the Sunni Waqf Board in the Dhannipur village for the construction of mosque named after Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) in compliance with the Supreme Court order issued in November 2019 in the Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri mosque title suit.
The Indo-Islamic Cultural Foundation (IICF) has been tasked with the construction of the mosque. The construction of the mosque was supposed to start in January 2021. It is however delayed with the foundation explaining nothing about the delay.
On Friday December 15, 2023, Chairman of the Ayodhya Mosque Development Committee and Maharashtra BJP leader Haji Arfat Shaikh, said the foundation stone of the mosque will be laid in the next year without confirming the exact date.
He also said that it will take five to six years to complete the mosque construction. He said the committee is planning to invite Imam e Haram for the opening of the mosque.
“When the mosque is ready in the next five to six years, top clerics of all countries will be invited, including Imam-e-Haram, who leads the namaz at the Grand Mosque in Makkah”, news agency PTI quoted Haji Arfat as saying.
The visits of Imam e Haram to any country are planned much in advance and their confirmation requires a lengthy and tedious procedure.
Arfat did not explain how and when the committee plans to approach Imam e Haram As-Sudais’ office for his confirmation to attend the opening of the yet to be constructed mosque in Ayodhya.
Arafat Shaikh also claimed that the mosque will be "more beautiful" than the iconic Taj Mahal - one of the seven wonders of the world.
Arfat said that the new mosque, set to be the largest in India, will house the world's biggest Quran, measuring 21 feet high and 36 feet wide.
President and Chief Trustee of the Indo-Islamic Cultural Foundation Zufar Ahmad Faruqi also said the foundation of the Ayodhya mosque will be laid next year.
"We are hoping to lay the foundation stone for the mosque next year and we will invite clerics from across the country for the ceremony," he said. "Once the mosque is ready, we will invite dignitaries from across the world," Faruqi, also the Chairman of Uttar Pradesh Sunni Central Waqf Board, said.
"We are hoping to lay the foundation stone for the mosque next year and we will invite clerics from across the country for the ceremony," he said.
"Once the mosque is ready, we will invite dignitaries from across the world," Faruqi, also the Chairman of Uttar Pradesh Sunni Central Waqf Board, said.
The land allotted for the Ayodhya mosqe was earlier dragged into a legal battle when two Delhi-based sisters in February 2021 moved the Lucknow bench of the Allahabad High Court, claiming its ownership.
Adding to the controversy, the All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB) had said the proposed mosque at Dhannipur in Ayodhya was against the Waqf Act and also against the Islamic Shariah.
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