Qutub Minar Not a Place of Worship

In News

• Recently, a Delhi court reserved its order on a plea challenging the dismissal of a civil suit that sought to restore 27 Hindu and Jain temples inside the Qutub Minar complex in New Delhi.

Key Points

• Original Suit: The original suit was dismissed last year by a civil judge in Delhi, citing that it was barred under provisions of the Places of Worship (Special Provisions) Act, 1991, following which the petitioners have filed the present appeal. 
• Claim: 
  • It was claimed that these temples were demolished to build the Quwwat-ul-Islam mosque.
  • The dismissal of their suit based on the 1991 Act was wrong because the Qutub Minar complex has been exempted from the Act.
    • Section 4(3)(a) of the 1991 Act specifically exempts monuments protected under the AMASR Act of 1958.
  • Qutub Minar comes under the purview of the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains (AMASR) Act of 1958. 
    • Also, Section 16(1) of the AMASR Act, 1958 allows the right to “restore” the temples and worship on the premises.
    • Section 16(1) says, “A protected monument maintained by the Central Government under this Act which is a place of worship or shrine shall not be used for any purpose inconsistent with its character.”

Image Courtesy: ET 

• Claim in original suit: 
  • The structure was built by allegedly demolishing 27 Hindu and Jain temples. 
  • Signs of these structures were still visible and argued. The deity is never lost. If the deity survives, then the right to worship also survives.

ASI’s stand  

• Not a place of worship: 
  • The Qutub Minar complex is not a place of worship and neither was it one when it was first notified as a protected monument in 1914.  
• Remains of temples: 
  • Remains of 27 temples were procured for the mosque by spending 2,00,000 Deliwals (coins) on each but there is no information on whether these materials were available locally or brought from outside.  
  • Nowhere in the available records does it mention that these remains were retrieved by demolishing temples.
• Iron Pillar: 
  • As for the Iron Pillar inside the premises, it cannot be established whether this pillar is at its original place. There is no record to say that this is a Vishnu Stambh or Meru Dhwaj.

Character of Monument

• The character of a monument is decided on the date at which it comes under protection. And this is how several places where religious practices were being conducted came to be protected under the AMASR Act. 
• The Court’s stand is based on the character of the Monument: 
  • Section 16 of the AMASR Act seems to be based on the same principle as that of Section 3 of the Places of Worship Act.
    • It bars the conversion of a religious place. 

Places of Worship (Special Provisions) Act, 1991:

• About: An Act to prohibit conversion of any place of worship and to provide for the maintenance of the religious character of any place of worship as it existed on the 15th day of August, 1947, and for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto.
• Section 3 of the Act: It bars the conversion, in full or part, of a place of worship of any religious denomination into a place of worship of a different religious denomination, or even a different segment of the same religious denomination.
• Section 4(1): It declares that the religious character of a place of worship shall continue to be the same as it existed on August 15, 1947. 
• Section 4(2): Any suit or legal proceeding with respect to the conversion of the religious character of any place of worship existing on August 15, 1947, pending before any court, shall abate — and no fresh suit or legal proceedings shall be instituted.
• Section 5: The Act shall not apply to the Ramjanmabhoomi-Babri Masjid case, and to any suit, appeal or proceeding relating to it.
• Section 6: It prescribes a punishment of maximum three-years imprisonment along with a fine for contravening the provisions of the Act
• Challenging the Law: The law has been challenged on the ground that:
  • It bars judicial review, which is a basic feature of the Constitution, 
  • It imposes an arbitrary irrational retrospective cutoff date
  • It abridges the right to religion of Hindus, Jains, Buddhists and Sikhs.

Qutub Minar

• Qutub Minar is a soaring, 73 m-high tower of victory.
• It was built in 1193 by Qutab-ud-din Aibak immediately after the defeat of Delhi’s last Hindu kingdom. 
• The tower has five distinct storeys, each marked by a projecting balcony and tapers from a 15 m diameter at the base to just 2.5 m at the top. 
  • The first three storeys are made of red sandstone; 
  • The fourth and fifth storeys are of marble and sandstone. 
• At the foot of the tower is the Quwwat-ul-Islam Mosque, the first mosque to be built in India. 
• An inscription over its eastern gate provocatively informs that it was built with material obtained from demolishing ’27 Hindu temples’. 
• A 7 m-high iron pillar stands in the courtyard of the mosque. 
• Controversial origin: The origins of Qutub Minar are shrouded in controversy. 
  • Some believe it was erected as a tower of victory to signify the beginning of the Muslim rule in India. 
  • Others say it served as a minaret to the muezzins to call the faithful to prayer.
• Construction over years: Qutab-ud-din Aibak, the first Muslim ruler of Delhi, commenced the construction of the Qutab Minar in 1200 AD, but could only finish the basement. 
  • His successor, Iltutmush, added three more storeys, and in 1368, Firoz Shah Tughlak constructed the fifth and the last storey.
• Different architecture: The development of architectural styles from Aibak to Tughlak is quite evident in the minar. 
  • The relief work and even the materials used for construction differ. 
  • The 238 feet Qutab Minar is 47 feet at the base and tapers to nine feet at the apex. 
  • The tower is ornamented by bands of inscriptions and by four projecting balconies supported by elaborately decorated brackets. 
    • The minar (tower) is engraved with fine arabesque decorations on its surface, mainly verses from the Quran.
  • Even though in ruins, the Quwwat Ui Islam (Light of Islam) Mosque in the Qutab complex is one of the most magnificent structures in the world. 
• Qutab-ud-din Aibak started its construction in 1193 and the mosque was completed in 1197.
• Iltutmush in 1230 and Alla-ud-din Khilji in 1315 made additions to the building. 
• Main mosque: It comprises an inner and outer courtyard, decorated with shafts and surrounded by piller. 
  • Most of these shafts are from the 27 Hindu temples, which were plundered to construct the mosque. 
  • It is, therefore, not surprising that the Muslim mosque has typical Hindu ornamentation. Close to the mosque is one of Delhi’s most curious antiques, the Iron Pillar.
• UNESCO World Heritage Site: Qutub Minar and its monuments were declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1993.

Source: TH