Mosque demolition for Hindu pilgrimage sparks outrage in India

• Muslim community members were removing a three-foot section of Ujjain’s Shahi Masjid affected by road widening.
• A crane used to remove part of the minaret malfunctioned, causing the section to fall onto the mosque’s roof.
• The incident comes amid tensions over the mosque’s partial removal ahead of the 2028 Hindu religious gathering.

A historic mosque in the Indian city of Ujjain was damaged Thursday during the removal of a section affected by a road-widening project linked to preparations for the 2028 Simhastha Kumbh.

Under an agreement reached with local authorities, members of the Shahi Masjid committee and the Muslim community had begun removing a roughly three-foot portion of the structure themselves. The Madhya Pradesh High Court recorded the settlement between the mosque committee and the administration.

The situation changed when officials assisted with removing part of the mosque’s minaret. According to the mosque’s city Qazi, a crane’s strap broke during the operation, causing a section of the minaret to fall onto the mosque’s roof.

The Ujjain district administration confirmed that part of the mosque was damaged during the removal operation but said there were no deaths, injuries or people trapped in the building.

The road-widening project is being carried out ahead of Simhastha 2028, a major Hindu religious gathering held in Ujjain. Authorities have said the work is intended to improve traffic management and accommodate the large number of devotees expected to attend.

Reaction

The mosque dispute had already triggered protests in the city. On September 28, tensions escalated after protesters confronted police and stones were thrown, prompting authorities to use tear gas and baton charges.

The dispute has also unfolded amid wider concerns among Muslim groups over the treatment of Islamic religious sites in India under the country's increasingly influential Hindu nationalist political environment. Muslim representatives have opposed the removal, while authorities have maintained that the Ujjain project is an infrastructure measure tied to the upcoming religious gathering.

The mosque committee has said it will continue pursuing the matter through peaceful and democratic means, while authorities have maintained a heavy security presence around the site.

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