An application has been filed before the Allahabad High Court challenging its recent order declaring Suit No. 17—filed on behalf of Lord Krishna Virajman—as the representative suit for all Hindu parties in the ongoing Sri Krishna Janmabhoomi–Shahi Idgah dispute in Mathura.
The application, submitted by Kaushal Kishore Thakur, seeks the quashing of the court’s July 18 order, arguing that the designation of Suit No. 17 as a representative suit is unjust to those litigants who have been pursuing the matter for several years.
According to the plea, Suit No. 17 was instituted after all pending cases related to the dispute were transferred from the Mathura court to the High Court and subsequently clubbed together. The petitioner asserts that elevating a newly filed case to representative status disregards the long-standing efforts of other parties engaged in legal proceedings regarding the disputed site.
The legal battle centers around the Shahi Idgah mosque in Mathura, believed by Hindu petitioners to have been built during the reign of Mughal emperor Aurangzeb after demolishing a temple at the birthplace of Lord Krishna. Multiple suits have been filed over the years seeking the removal of the mosque, restoration of the temple, and possession of the land.
In May 2023, the High Court transferred 18 such suits from the Mathura court to itself. More recently, on August 1, 2024, the court rejected an application by the Muslim parties challenging the maintainability of the suits seeking restoration of the Krishna Janmabhoomi temple.
