Mumbai: In a controversial move, the administration in Maharashtra, India, has demolished a section of a mosque that was built 25 years ago, citing illegal encroachments as the reason.
According to Indian media reports, officials from the municipal authority arrived at the site of Subhaniya Mosque with heavy machinery and without any prior notice, leading to heightened tensions in the area as large crowds gathered in protest.
Demonstrators voiced their anger against the administration, accusing it of bias and demanding justice for the mosque’s destruction. The mosque’s imam and committee assured the authorities that they had all necessary documentation regarding the construction, but their pleas were ignored, resulting in the demolition of part of the mosque.
This incident has sparked a wave of anger among the Muslim community. Opposition party Congress’s Hindu MLA, Varsha Singwad, has also come forward to support the Muslims in their protest against the demolition.
Singwad reassured the Muslim population that she had appealed to the state’s Chief Minister, Eknath Shinde, for intervention. As a result, the Chief Minister has temporarily halted any further demolitions of the mosque.
Despite the Chief Minister’s orders, municipal officials left the site with their machinery but threatened to return in eight days for additional demolitions.
