No Ganpati celebrations, ownership in doubt: Why Bengaluru’s Idgah Maidan is mired in controversy

The Supreme Court on Tuesday refused to grant permission to celebrate Ganesh festival at Bengaluru’s Idgah Maidan.

A three-judge apex court bench headed by Justice Indira Banerjee, ordering ‘status quo’ to be maintained, instructed both parties to approach the Karnataka High Court.

“The issues raised in the Special Leave Petition may be agitated by both parties before the High Court. In the meanwhile, the status quo as of today will be maintained by both sides. SLP is disposed of,” the bench also comprising justices Abhay S Oka and M M Sundresh said.

The top court was hearing an appeal filed by the Karnataka Waqf Board challenging an order of the Karnataka High Court which permitted the state government to consider and pass appropriate orders on the applications received by the Deputy Commissioner of Bengaluru (Urban) seeking the use of Idgah Maidan at Chamarajpet for Ganesh Chaturthi celebrations.

The apex court’s decision means that while one controversy has been side-stepped the larger questions of who owns the ground remains.

Let’s examine the controversy and why the disputed land has made headlines recently:

What is Idgah Maidan?

Idgah Maidan is 2.1 acres of land in the heart of Chamrajpet, one of the oldest localities of Bengaluru, as per The Quint.

The ground is used as a playground, however on it exists an Idgah for prayers on festivals of Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha.

The map of Bengaluru and documents from 1871 and 1938 also show the land to have a Idgah and burial ground, as per The Quint.

Ganpati row

Indian Express on Monday reported that the state government was considering allowing the erection of a pandal for Ganesh chaturti on the Idgah Maidan.

The BJP government in the state has been feeling pressure from Hindutva groups wanting to install a Ganesh statue at the ground.

This, after the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagar Palike (BBMP) on 6 August ruled that the Idgah Maidan belonged to the state rather than the Waqf board.

“There are numerous applications for permission to set up a Ganesh pandal at the ground. With the BBMP polls around the corner, many politically affiliated groups want to use the opportunity to promote themselves as the first to erect a Ganesh pandal at the ground. The government does not want to allow this and is in favour of conducting it through the state for 24–30 hours,” a source said told the Indian Express.

The Karnataka High Court on 25 August said the land could be used only as a playground and for celebrating Independence Day and Republic Day by the government or the BBMP.

The Muslim community can offer prayers on both Eids, it added.

However, a division bench modified the order on appeal a day later and let the government to take a decision on the land, as per the report.

The government told the high court that the deputy commissioner of Bengaluru had received five applications for using the ground on 31 August “for the purpose of holding religious and cultural activities”.

Acting Chief Justice Alok Aradhe and Justice S Vishwajith Shetty said in the modified order, “The Indian society comprises religious, linguistic, regional or sectional diversities. The Constitution of India itself fosters brotherhood amongst various sections of society. The principle of religious toleration is characteristic of Indian civilisation”.

The Waqf board then went to the Supreme Court, arguing no other religious festivals have been held there “for 200 years”, as per NDTV.

The Supreme Court on Tuesday, maintaining status quo, sent the matter back to the Karnataka High Court.

Controversy, claims and counter-claims

While the land’s ownership has been in dispute for ages, the latest controversy kicked off in June.

It all began with a question – who owns Idgah Maidan?

That was the query posed by some right-wing groups to the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) in June, as per Hindustan Times.

The BBMP in its reply said that records show it owns the land.

Then, outfits such as the Hindu Janajagruthi Samithi and Sanathan Sanstha began demanding that they too be allowed to make observances on the playground.

All of this was news to the Karnataka State Waqf Board, which claims that the land is a registered Waqf property and has been since the 1850s, as per The Quint.

Records of Central Muslim Association, which has been the caretaker of the land since 1964, corroborate these claims, as per the report.

The Waqf board further points to a 1964 Supreme Court ruling to back up its claim.

As per Hindustan Times, the apex court in its 1964 decision said it found no merit in the city administration’s claim of owning the land.

A community member who did not wish to be named said the two-judge bench observed that the Idgah and the graveyard have existed for a very long time, and that the high court was justified in dismissing the corporation’s appeal over ownership.

This person said they have the relevant documents to prove the claim, as per the report.

A fresh twist

As per The Hindu, Chief Civic Commissioner Tushar Giri Nath who initially said the land to be a playground, later gave up the claim.

Giri claimed the civic body was permanently injuncted from entering the land and asked the Karnataka State Board of Auqaf to make a claim and get the khata in its name submitting relevant documents, following which the board made an application on 21 June.

The board submitted the 1965 government gazette and made its claim.

However, the civic body dismissed the petition and declared Karnataka Revenue Department to be the default owner of the land.

In his order, SM Srinivas, Joint Commissioner (West), Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP), said the gazette only listed “Idgah, Sunni, Chamarajpet” in serial number 137, but did not mention the survey number, extent of land, corporation number or the chakkubandi of the land parcel, and hence, was unclear**.**

Srinivas said that the Supreme Court order of 1964 only gave the Muslim community “congregational rights” and clearly said the burden of proving ownership and possession of the land on behalf of the Muslim community lay on the plaintiff.

The order also argued that given that the community had only been given congregational rights over the land by the apex court, it does not satisfy the definition of “Waqf” as per Waqf Act, 1954.

This was followed by Karnataka revenue minister R Ashoka claiming that the land belongs to the revenue department.

“The land, which is referred to by different names by people, actually belongs to the revenue department. The revenue records show that it does not belong to the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) or any ‘Board’,” Ashoka was quoting as saying by Hindustan Times.

Right-wing groups demand demolition

Following that announcement, right-wing activists began demanding demolition of the tower at the controversial site.

Vishwa Sanatan Parishat president Bhaskaran, saying that when there was a declaration that the Idgah Maidan is a property of the state government, asked why there should there be an Idgah tower.

“We have been fighting over the issue since 2017. Muslims have been given separate Idgah Maidan and kabristan (funeral ground) by the state government. If they are still insisting on conducting prayers here and stake claim, then their intention is very clear. They don’t want any other community to make use of this property,” he said.

The state government has allotted an alternative site for Idgah Maidan though Muslims did not own the previous Idgah Maidan considering that they are also citizens of this country,” he  claimed.

“We will write a letter to BBMP and state government and also file a petition before the High Court making the state government and revenue department as parties to take down Idgah tower,” Bhaskaran said.

“If Idgah tower is allowed to stand there, which is now a property of the revenue department, it will create a permanent problem and lead to communal clashes. It will lead to the murders of Hindus. We all know how violence flared up after laser light was flashed on a mosque during Ganesh festival in Hubballi city. Hence, the Idgah tower must be demolished in the interest of society,” he added.

Muslim leaders responded to those claims by saying that the Idgah tower has hundreds of years of history and asking what would be gained from its demolition.

“If the ground is utilised for other purposes it’s fine but why seek the demolition?” they wondered.

Waqf Board chairman Shafi Saadi vowed that the board would wage a legal battle against the BBMP.

“The Supreme Court has given a verdict in 1965 that Idgah maidan is the property of the Waqf board and the decision is not tenable and the order amounts to contempt of court,” he had stated.

With inputs from agencies

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