New Delhi: All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen chief Asaduddin Owaisi has appealed for the urgent intervention of Union Minority Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju regarding the Race Course Masjid situation, while criticizing the Delhi Waqf Board for not challenging the recent demolition directive.
In a social media statement, Owaisi emphasized that the religious site has been recognized as a gazetted waqf property since 1977 and remains safeguarded under the Waqf Amendment Act as a property established through usage. He expressed concern that the board took no legal action against the demolition order and failed to seek a resolution.
Owaisi further pointed out that because the Delhi Waqf Board has lacked a formal constitution since 2023, the board's chief executive officer should have stepped in to address the situation, though that action was also omitted.
The controversy surrounds a century-old mosque situated close to the official residence of the Prime Minister. The Land and Development Office issued an eviction notice classifying the property as unauthorized and mandating that the grounds be cleared within a span of six days.
While the Land and Development Office asserts that the mosque occupies government property, the organization Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind has requested formal safeguarding of the mosque and adjacent cemetery, pressing officials to halt any destruction plans until the legal matters are settled.
A delegation from Jamiat, represented by Mohammad Hakimuddin Qasmi, submitted a formal memorandum noting that the location is included in the heritage inventory of the New Delhi Municipal Council as referenced in the 1977 Delhi Gazette, as well as an updated registry kept by the Ministry of Minority Affairs. Jamiat has requested documentation from both the municipal council and the waqf board while urging a suspension of demolition activities. According to reports, Minister Rijiju listened to the delegation's concerns and promised to pursue all available avenues to address the issue.