The Uttar Pradesh authorities initiated the demolition of Madni Masjid on Sunday, February 9 in Hata Nagar after the High Court stay order reached its expiration. The mosque was demolished with the use of several bulldozers under the vigilance of a huge police force including DSP Kasya Kundan Singh and BSF forces
The controversy began on December 19, 2024, when local officials, accompanied by a police team inspected Madni Masjid to investigate land encroachment allegations. The survey confirmed that the Muslim community bought a 32-decimal lot 15 years ago but built a mosque on 30 decimals which expanded across their purchased property.
The investigation reports showed the mosque occupied 4 decimals of Nagar Palika land and 1 decimal of public land adjacent to its initial 30 decimals.
After the the survey the district administration sent official notices to the mosque’s representatives demanding the required documents and maps that proved the construction of the mosque. The notices granted a 15-day deadline to respond, warning that document delivery failure would result in legal action.
However, the representative body failed to comply with necessary documentation requests during the specified period, prompting the authorities to proceed with the demolition.
The authorities confirmed that their actions followed legal procedures after the stay period ended while the mosque representatives failed to show obedience.
The Madni Mosque has been working for over two decades, which has been a prominent Islamic teaching centre, and a zonal office of the Tablighi Jamaat in eastern UP.
Earlier in December 2024, Uttar Pradesh’s Fatehpur district authorities demolished a part of the 180-year-old historic Noori Masjid, citing encroachment issues. The rear portion of the Noori Jama Masjid in Lalauli town in the district was demolished using bulldozers under heavy police presence.
Authorities claimed that a part of the mosque, which dates back to 1839, obstructed the proposed widening of the Banda Bahraich road (State Highway-13).
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